


The Pull of Gravity

by kingdomfaraway



Series: Atlas [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Angst, Domestic Avengers, F/M, Fluff, Found Family, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Irondad, Irondad & Spiderson, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker is Trying His Best, Protective Peter Parker, Protective Tony Stark, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, alternative universe, spiderson
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:01:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 39,982
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25242082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kingdomfaraway/pseuds/kingdomfaraway
Summary: Peter's life had become, well, interesting.Both Peter and Tony worked to find some sort of normal they could both adhere to, but something like that was almost impossible.(AU: Sequel to Astronomy In Reverse, Tony is Peter's legal guardian and together they navigate being superheroes & finding your family.)
Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Peter Parker/Michelle Jones
Series: Atlas [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1818907
Comments: 64
Kudos: 217





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Half way into finishing the first story, I got the idea for a sequel and quickly went to work on writing it while finishing up the first story. 
> 
> And this is not that sequel. This isn’t even the 3rd draft of the sequel. I kept fighting myself on what the story I wanted to tell really was. I ping ponged ideas for days, drove my husband crazy with storylines and ideas. And then I gave up completely and went to work on something else. Then as I sat at work two days later, I suddenly had the entire plot thought of and a few thousand words done instead of doing actual work. 
> 
> There is a lot that got left on the cutting room floor, enough that I will most likely be posting short stories in this universe as well.
> 
> Hopefully this is worth a read. :)

Peter's life had become, well, interesting. 

Both Peter and Tony worked to find some sort of normal they could both adhere to, but something like that was almost impossible. 

There was no way he could hide the fact that he lived with Tony Stark, the media already broke that story for them the day Pepper filed legal guardian papers. They’d had a press conference which Peter did not have to attend, where Pepper explained the situation and pressed for Peter’s privacy. That didn’t stop reckless speculation about who Peter was, but they were expecting it.

At first, he was hounded by reporters anytime he went outside. Eventually, things died down, especially when Iron Man “joined” the Avengers again. It was a loud enough situation that suddenly Peter was yesterday's news. He still occasionally got reporters and people staring at him, asking him questions, but Peter just tried to ignore them.

They lived in the tower, along with Pepper. They had dinner most nights as a family and sometimes with additional guests. They tinkered together in the lab when they could. Tony became more involved with Stark Industries again. The Tower started to become full of people, a bustling hub for Stark Industries on the lower floors. 

Peter went back to school, joined the Decathlon team, got straight A’s, and even managed to turn in his homework most of the time. He spent lunch with Ned and occasionally Michelle who mostly just made fun of them. He was late to school on some days, left early for Spider-man business on others. Eventually, kids stopped looking at him all the time and moved on. 

He patrolled three nights a week, maybe even an extra day depending. He flung himself around Queens, keeping up appearances as the friendly neighborhood Spider-man. He stopped minor robbery and muggings, saved cats from trees, and helped little old ladies cross the street.

Peter felt more like himself then he had since Ben had died. It was good, it was nice, it was safe.

=====

“Do you have any actual plans?” Wanda asked around a mouthful of a turkey sandwich.

“Um,” Peter replied, hovering his sandwich in front of his mouth. “Not really. I mean, Tony wants to stay here a bit but I’d rather be in the city. I can’t Spider-man here.” 

Wanda gave him a sympathetic smile. “I’m sure Tony will let you stay in the city if you ask. You did promise you’d take me to the Natural History Museum again this summer.” 

Peter and Tony had discussed that at lengths, the pros and cons of spilling his identity to the Avengers. He’d be seeing the Avengers as both Peter and Spider-man, they were going to catch on eventually. It would be easier if they told them, instead of the secret getting found out. 

Peter and Spider-man were introduced to the Avengers. It wasn’t as awkward as Peter thought it would be, they seemed to take it well.

Out of all the Avengers, he found himself closest to Wanda. Not only were they the closest in age, but they came from strikingly similar backgrounds. They both experienced being orphaned, both lost someone close to them after and both had powers thrust upon them. They never directly talked about her brother or his uncle, but they usually talked around it. Peter found her funny and intelligent and surprisingly warm. Tony had warned him that sometimes Wanda can be a little closed off, but she seemed to like Peter right away.

Usually, when he was at the Compound if she was there, they spent a lot of time together. They were talking about Peter’s summer vacation which was starting next week. They’d come to the Compound for the weekend to celebrate finishing the last of his finals. 

“Oh yeah, totally. Maybe I can convince him to let us stay in the city for a few weeks before coming back.”

Wanda nodded but before she could say anything else, Steve came walking into the kitchen. Peter tensed a little. He tried not to let it show, but he knew he wasn’t the best at hiding his feelings. Steve, for his part, didn’t act like he knew something was up. 

“Hey,” Steve said as he walked in, “you guys ready to get some training done today?”

Training with the Avengers was relatively new for Peter. He was starting to train in combat with the team, learning how to defend himself better, without relying on using his abilities all the time. He was working with Tony to create a Spider-man level obstacle course, so he could practice swinging around too. 

“Can’t wait,” Wanda said without much excitement. Peter knew she didn’t care for training, everyone kept insisting she needed to learn how to actually fight, but she didn’t want to. Peter could relate, he didn’t mind learning to defend himself, but he didn’t like the idea of actually attacking and hurting people. For the most part, the team was good, no one really pushed him to do it. 

Steve didn’t react to Wanda’s lack of enthusiasm, he just kept smiling. He started to make himself something to eat. Peter had another moment of, what is my life, watching Captain America making himself a peanut butter sandwich. 

“I was thinking, Pete,” Steve said as he finished his sandwich. He didn’t come over to the table, instead, he stood at the counter in the center of the kitchen. “I know you tried to figure out how much you could lift once, but I think we should test it again. Get an accurate reading.”

“Why?” Peter questioned.

“It’d be nice to know,” Steve answered. “I’m pretty sure you can lift more than Bucky and I can. Maybe even the Hulk.”

Peter didn’t know if Steve was trying to flatter him or not, but the idea did seem appealing. He had an idea of how much he could probably lift. Taking a building off of himself was evident enough that he was pretty strong.

“Maybe,” he said, “but yeah, that sounds fun.”

====

Tony couldn’t help but give his best shit-eating grin as he watched Peter hold the 2,000lb weight over his head. He didn’t even look remotely bothered by it, instead, he almost looked bored. The kid was modest to a fault, of course. He didn’t even look proud or smug about it either.

Tony really loved his kid. 

Steve was standing beside him grinning as well, despite not being able to lift past the 1,200lb mark. When Steve brought up the strength test to him, he already knew Peter would lift far more than he could. It seemed like Steve was hoping this would maybe start fostering a bridge between Peter and him. 

They didn’t start with a big crowd, Tony came to watch but by the time they were both at 1,000lbs everyone had come to see. Natasha, Clint, Wanda, Vision, Bucky, and Sam were all sitting around them. Tony made sure he had FRIDAY save a recording to show Rhodey and Pepper too. 

Peter very slowly lowered the weight he’d been holding and clapped his hands together. “Okay, what size is next?”

Sometime ago Tony had created special weights to train with. He’d gone up to 20 tons in the off chance they’d ever need it. They were designed to be small and easy for someone to pick up (well, someone who could hold that much weight). Tony had to wear the Iron Man suit to even get them from their storage location.

“You should jump up to 5 tons, I’m sure you can do it,” Sam had called out. 

Peter made a face, looking over at the small round balls. “I dunno, I mean, that seems like a lot.”

“You can handle it,” Tony encouraged.

That seemed to make Peter’s mind up, he walked over and looked at the ball marked 5 tons. He took a few deep breaths and without any struggle, lifted it up and over his head.

The cheer from the crowd put a blush on Peter’s face and he started to grin. Tony liked seeing him so happy and the team cheering for him. He wanted Peter to see the Avengers as a team, even if he wasn’t a part of it yet.

He admired how much the kid cared about Tony’s feelings when it came to them, especially Steve. He tried to tell Peter not to worry but he did anyway. Tony was impressed with himself, really, how well he handled coming back to the team. Yeah, he sometimes still wanted to punch Steve in the face, but really, he deserved it sometimes.

As the team cheered him on, Peter ended up lifting 25 tons before calling it quits. He didn’t look like he was exhausted, but Tony could tell he was starting to get there. 

After a lot of pats on the back, the group dispersed from the gym. Peter had stayed behind to move the weights back into their storage location.

“Don’t worry about it, Pete,” Tony said, he was about to call up the suit. “You deserve a break, I can take care of it.”

“It’s cool,” Peter said, “I’ve got it.”

“You know,” Tony said as he watched the sixteen-year-old effortlessly carry 10 tons to a storage closet. “I’m very proud of you. If I don’t say it enough.”

Walking back, Peter stopped and smiled at him. “Thanks, Tony.” He finished putting back the weights and then walked over to him. “I know this was Steve’s way of trying to make me like him more.”

“I wouldn’t say that,” Tony said, which really wasn’t that much of a lie. “We’ve been wanting to test your strength out for a while now.”

“I dunno, I just don’t see why we have to be friends.”

Tony sighed. He greatly understood where Peter was coming from with this but he didn’t want him to go down the same path he had either. “You don’t have to be best friends. You just have to trust and respect each other. If you ever want to be part of the team, you can’t dislike him.”

“I just don’t hate him or anything. Hating Captain America is treason at this point,” Peter said quickly, “I just don’t… I don’t know. It’s hard to explain. I mean, he hurt you. I don’t like just letting him get away with it. He suffered zero consequences for his actions. You were the one that suffered.”

God, he loved his kid so much. Peter was his biggest cheerleader and he couldn’t believe how lucky he was. “Look,” he started, “you might not think Steve suffered consequences, but he did. We both were wrong. And you know I wouldn’t say those words unless I actually believed them.”

“You weren’t wrong,” Peter insisted. “You were trying your best.”

Tony sighed again, he reached out and put an arm around Peter’s shoulders, bringing him in for a side hug. “I appreciate all of this, Pete but I don’t want you to be angry over this. I did enough of that on my own. I just need you to try, okay? Give Steve a chance. You seem to get along alright with Barnes.”

“That’s different,” Peter injected, “Bucky didn’t know what he was doing, Steve lied on purpose, he knew what he was doing.”

Tony’s relationship with Barnes was complicated. Tony could agree with Peter and everyone else, Bucky was a victim but that didn’t make what he did any less horrible to think about. He found it odd that Peter held just an opposite viewpoint as he did. 

“Pete, I really appreciate everything that you’re doing for me but being mad at Steve isn’t helpful. Can you at least try to give Steve a chance?”

Peter let out a little huff sound but Tony could tell he was about to give in. “Fine,” he mumbled. 

“Alright kiddo, go hit the showers and meet me in the lab. We can get some work done before dinner.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :D

“Hey Pete, can you wait a second?” 

Peter stopped walking down the hallway, he sighed before turning around to see Steve Rogers walking quickly to catch up with him. 

“Yes?” He asked, trying hard not to sound annoyed. Tony and he were leaving back to the Compound in a few hours. Peter and Wanda were watching season five of Buffy and he wanted to get in a few more episodes before they left. 

“I just wanted to tell you what a great job you did the other day with the weights. I’m very impressed with how well you’ve done,” Steve said as he arrived in front of Peter. He had a wide smile on his face.

“Um,” Peter started, “thanks I guess. I wasn’t really doing much.”

“Don’t be so modest!” Steve said, his voice dripping with confidence and happiness. Peter had to squash down the feeling of being talked to like a child. He felt like Steve was treating him like a five-year-old who just brushed their teeth on their own. “You’ve got a lot of strength in you, kid.”

He hated when Steve called him kid, that was Tony’s name for him. “Sure. Well, I’ve gotta go.”

Peter turned to walk away but Steve started again. “Pete, give me a second, will ya?”

Peter sighed, remembering he owed Steve a chance. “Yeah?”

“I was thinking when you’re staying at the Compound, why don’t you join Sam and me on our runs in the mornings?”

Peter couldn’t contain his snort. He did not wake up early and he did not run. “Uh, well, that’s not really my thing. At all.”

Steve laughed. “Yeah I figured, but why not give it a try one morning? I promise it isn’t that bad and we’d both smoke Sam.”

Peter grinned at that. “Okay, maybe.”

“I’ll take it.”

Peter awkwardly saluted Steve feeling very stupid the second he did it before turning and running awkwardly down the hallway to the sound of Steve’s chuckles.

====

Tony was getting used to his new role in the Avengers, he was surprised how easily he moved away from a leadership role. It was actually kind of relaxing not to have to worry too much, especially since he started to worry more about Peter. The kid was doing well with his new life, he seemed to be happy. He had his friends, school and was getting along pretty well with everyone who wasn’t Steve Rogers. 

He knew Peter couldn’t really hate anyone, he was just too ridiculously good for that. He knew that eventually, he’d find a good balance with Steve, after all, he had. 

Barnes on the other hand, was not too easy for Tony to just forgive him. He knew logically that Barnes didn’t do anything because he wanted to, he was forced to. After spending a lot of time in Wakanda, he was now free of any of HYDRA’s doing. Barnes seemed to be walking on eggshells around Tony too. He was careful, never overstepping but still trying to work together. 

His relationship with everyone was mostly the same. Things were a bit awkward at first, but the second Peter was around, things got lighter. Just as Tony thought, everyone seemed to take a liking to Peter. It was like the kid could only bring out the best in everyone he talked to. Tony used to feel like he did the opposite, it was a nice change of pace.

Peter wasn’t part of the team but he was always so eager to help. Despite all the good that Peter had been doing and all the help, he offered he still didn’t want him on the team. He was still so young, the thought of putting Peter out there in more danger wasn’t comforting at all.

He would never ask Peter not to be Spider-man, the only thing he can do is try his best to keep him from any additional danger.

Tony was well aware of the risk of being a superhero. He knew all too well the chance of injury big or little skyrocketed the second you choose to put a suit on and go out there. He just didn’t like the fact that his kid seemed to be a magnet for it. Especially since he kept insisting on trying to be the bigger hero. 

If Tony didn’t know him, he’d think Peter was reckless. But Tony knew it was Peter’s drive to do good and save people that made him do stupid things.

Like jumping in front of bullets. 

They’d been on the road for only an hour or so after leaving the Compound. Peter sat in the front seat, phone in hand. Tony was driving, he didn’t do it too often but a part of him really enjoyed the nice quietness of the drive back to the Tower. 

“Are you excited about summer?” Tony asked him, Peter had been a little too quiet after leaving. He seemed a bit more distracted than usual. 

“I guess,” Peter answered, not taking his eyes off his phone. 

“Come on,” Tony said, trying to keep his tone light, “what kid can say they get to spend their summer break hanging out with the Avengers?”

He caught a small smile on Peter’s face, but it didn’t last. Peter suddenly shot his head up and turned around in his seat. Tony looked up into the rearview mirror. A black car was coming up behind them. It was late at night, close to 9 on a Sunday, and it wasn't too suspect to see another car on the road. They were far enough outside the city, the roads weren’t always busy.

“What’s up?” Tony asked, eyes going back to the road in front of him. Out of the corner of his eye, he could still see Peter, turned in his seat.

“Something’s wrong,” Peter said, his voice very firm.

“Okay,” Tony said but didn’t make any effort to slow down the car. He knew about Peter’s spider sense, knew that it triggered if something life-threatening was about to happen. But Peter also told him that sometimes it goes a bit weird on him. “What do you think is wrong?”

Peter turned back around, but Tony could see him looking in the side mirror, still staring at the car. It didn’t come closer, the car was at a normal distance, going the normal speed. 

“I don’t know,” Peter replied, he had a tightness to his voice that Tony hadn’t ever heard before. “I just know something isn’t right.”

“Well,” Tony said, “we aren’t near any exits for a while. Do you want me to pull over and let this car pass us? Would that make you feel better?”

Peter didn’t make a sound but he didn’t have to, a second later he felt a thump and sudden vibration. Peter nearly jumped out of his skin as a hissing noise filled the car.

“Shit, it’s a flat,” Tony said, he quickly put his hazards on and started to direct the car over the shoulder. “Damn, kid, your spidey sense knew I’d get a flat tire?”

Peter made some kind of grunting sound but his eyes were still glued at the car behind them. It slowed down and stopped. “Don’t get out,” Peter said quickly, “wait until they pass.”

“I’m sure they just want to make sure we’re alright,” Tony said, he rolled down his window instead. He reached his hand out and waved the car to keep going. The car pulled up alongside them and the passenger window rolled down. “We’re good!” Tony said as the window went down to reveal an older man sitting in the driver’s seat. “Just got a flat.”

“Yeah,” the old man said, “do you need help?”

“No,” Tony said, trying his best to bring calm into the situation, Peter looked like he was ready to puke. “I’ve got all the assistance I need.”

The old man spared them another look before nodding and rolling up the window as he carefully passed their car. Tony waited until the car was a little down the road before turning back to Peter. He looked tense, his shoulders taut and he was staring at the leaving car.

“Kid,” Tony said softly, he reached out his hand to touch him, but Peter turned very quickly and moved out of his way. “Sorry, Peter.”

“It’s okay,” Peter said quickly and finally looked up at Tony. His face was a little pale and his eyes were wild looking. “Sorry, I just, sorry. I still feel like something is wrong and it’s just really hard to ignore it right now. I just want to get us out of here, like right now.”

He could tell Peter was trying to even out his breathing, he was taking deep controlled breaths. His eyes kept darting out front, the car was far enough ahead that the lights were no longer in view. It was already dark outside, there weren't any street lamps down the stretch of highway. Tony could call someone at the Compound and have them come get them. He could call up the suit and fly both of them back to the Compound if they needed to.

It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Peter at the moment, it was just the lack of anything dangerous happening. “Maybe you’ve been watching one too many slasher films,” Tony joked, hoping it would bring the kid back down to something normal. 

It didn’t seem to do the trick, instead, Peter looked over at him and glared. It wasn’t threatening in any way shape or form, but Tony knew he wasn’t amused with him. “Do you want me to call the Compound? I’m sure someone can be out here in less than an hour. If not, then you’re gonna have to be okay with me going out and fixing the tire. It shouldn’t take too long.”

“I’m surprised you know how to fix a tire,” Peter said lightly. His face was still taunt, but a small grin was spread across his lips.

Tony rolled his eyes. “Ha, ha, ha, ha. You forget I’m a genius. Just because I normally don't do manual labor does not make changing a tire something I can’t do, brat.”

Peter’s shoulders finally relaxed and he leaned back into the seat. “Okay. I’m going to go out with you and keep watch.”

“You really don't have to, kid.”

Tony knew it was a losing battle to even suggest it, but he had to. Peter shook his head and opened the car door, getting out quickly. Tony did the same and they both met at the back of the car. The right passenger tire had a very obvious puncture in it and had completely deflated. 

“Alright kiddo, time to learn how to change a flat tire!” Tony announced, Peter didn’t look enthusiastic in the slightest bit, but at least he looked like he was ready to make the effort.

Tony started the task of switching out the tire for the one in the back. He hadn’t been paying attention to Peter for a few minutes, instead of focusing on trying to get the task done as quickly as possible. The sound of a car coming from the opposite direction was followed by Peter’s hands grabbing Tony’s arm hard enough to make him yelp.

“Kid, it’s just a car,” he said, trying to get up from his kneeling position by the tire. Peter’s hand was still firmly grasping his arm. He tried to pull it away but he squeezed tighter. “You’re hurting me, Pete.”

“It’s the same guy that was behind us,” Peter said quickly, as the car in question pulled into their lane and off to the side. The two cars were now facing each other and the drivers' side door opened again. 

The same old man walked out, his hands were up. “Sorry,” he called out, “didn’t see you guys come back towards me. Wanted to make sure everything was alright. I know there aren't any exits around here for miles.”

Tony stood up, the kid still firmly attached to his arm. “Tony, no,” Peter said so quietly it might have been a whisper. 

Tony sighed and addressed the old man who was walking towards them. “Thanks, but we've got it. Just trying to teach my kid here the proper way to change a tire. Appreciate the gesture.”

As the old man continued to come closer, Tony could see a very odd look in his face. His eyes were a little vacant and face a little too expressionless. “Say,” the old man started, “aren’t you Tony Stark?”

Both he and Peter had the same reaction they both tensed greatly. Peter’s hands squeezed much, much harder now too. He also moved forward a little more, as if he was about to step in front of Tony.

“Sure,” Tony said carefully, not really knowing how to tread here. He knew Peter had his web-shooters but he also couldn’t let Peter use them and risk his identity being out. He didn’t know the guy’s motives either, he might just be a good samaritan and Tony didn’t want to risk hurting him for no reason. Instead, he went for casual, despite the death grip Peter had on his arm. 

The old man’s eyes flickered to Peter for a brief second. People generally knew who Peter Parker was now but they’d done as much as they could to keep Peter’s face out of the media. “Relax,” Tony said as quietly as he could, really hoping Peter would listen to him. “Everything’s fine.”

“Anyway,” Tony said, addressing the old man again, “as I said, we’ve got his covered. Thanks for your concern.”

There was a brief second where Tony thought that everything was going to be fine. The old man, however creepy, was going to turn back around and go into his car. 

But that didn’t happen, instead, the old man reached around and grabbed something from his back. At that exact moment, Peter stepped forward in front of Tony, throwing him onto the ground behind him in one solid move. The old man had the gun out and pointed at them and all Tony could do was struggle to right himself and stand back up.

Tony shouted, “Pete!” Just as the kid shot out a web towards the older man. It connected with the arm holding the gun. Peter pulled the webbing, in what looked like an attempt to bring the guy to the ground. It worked, the old man stumbled forward and landed on his knees.

Peter shot out another web, at the guy’s other hand, doing the same move as before. Tony was already up and his gauntlet was forming over his arm. By the time Tony had it pointing, the old man was kneeling on the ground, two arms and hands covered in webbing and stuck in place.

Peter was standing still, Tony was behind him still and could see Peter’s shoulders heaving and could hear the kid’s heavy breathing.

“Pete,” Tony said softly, the kid didn’t turn around. Instead, he dropped to his knees, leaning forward just a little. Tony could see one of his arms wrapped around his middle and - no. It couldn’t have happened. Everything was going by in a blur and he swore he didn’t hear a gunshot. He dropped down beside Peter, the gauntlet retracting so he could grab Peter’s shoulders and look at him.

“Tony,” the kid gritted out, face just as deadly pale as it had been in the car. His eyes met Tony’s briefly before he cast them down at his stomach. Tony moved for the arm that was wrapped around his middle. But he didn’t have to look, he already knew what he’d find there.

He could already see the dark liquid pouring out Peter’s arm and onto the ground. He could hear the painful whine that Peter made as his body lost the battle with staying upright. Tony could only hold him and help lower him to the ground, laying him on his back. 

“It’s okay kid,” Tony said to him, his eyes matching Peter’s. “It’ll be okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ME: I'mma gonna make this one more lighthearted!  
> ALSO ME: You know who hasn't taken a bullet yet? Peter.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the comments & kudos! I hope everyone is enjoying the new story, it's going to start getting super fun real soon too. ;) If you think last chapter had the ~whump~ just you wait, we haven't even touched the whump surface yet. :D

Peter knew he was in the medbay before he was really awake. He could smell the antiseptic, hear the monitor, and feel the IV in this hand. He tried to open his eyes, but couldn’t be bothered. There was a dull ache in his body, a sign that whatever drugs they had given him were slowly starting to leave. He tried to move a little but gave up that too, instead opting to fall back into a dreamless sleep.

Sometime later, Peter felt himself waking up again. This time he had the power to crack open his eyes. When he did, he saw a person shape sitting at his bedside. He immediately assumed it was Tony and tried to open his mouth but found that he couldn’t. He heard the shuffle of the chair and then a second later, Clint was standing over him.

“Tony’s going to be super pissed that you woke up the second he went to get food. I really hope you did that on purpose, he has not left your bedside for the last 24 hours. I think he pissed in a bottle.”

Peter tried to smile, but moving was not the greatest thing yet. He must have managed some kind of facial expression because Clint grinned widely at him.

“I’m pretty sure you should go back to sleep, it ain't gonna be pretty when you’re awake and Tony’s here again. Good luck, Spidey.”

He nodded, or at least he tried to. He wasn’t sure if he stayed awake or not, but suddenly the next time he opened his eyes, it was dark in the room and Tony was there. This time, Peter felt like he could open his mouth and talk without much trouble.

“Hey,” he said weakly, Tony’s head shot up and when he caught Peter’s open eyes, he got up and sat down on the edge of the bed.

“Finally,” Tony said, his voice was surprisingly soft. Peter knew he was angry with him, Clint didn’t even need to tell him that. While he was a little fuzzy on the details, Peter knew he had gotten shot at some point.

“Water?” Peter asked and Tony nodded, leaning over and grabbing a cup from the table. He held it out for Peter but when he went to lift his hands, Tony shook his head.

“Don’t move, I’ll help. Just lift your head a little,” Tony said and Peter did so. He put the cup to Peter’s lips and helped him drink. The water was a welcome relief down his dry throat. He tried to drink more but Tony pulled the cup away. “Only a little.”

“Thanks,” he said and then leaned back in the bed. Tony put the cup down on the table. “Didya get bingo yet?” He asked, trying to lighten the mood. Even if Tony didn’t look angry, he could feel it. Maybe not angry, but frustration. 

“Peter,” Tony started, “what you did was very, very stupid. You could have died.”

“But I didn’t,” Peter countered. There was still not a lot of pain, just an underlying hum that spread around his midsection.

Most people told Peter he was lucky with his healing abilities, but he didn’t really think that way. It always seemed the people assumed he just didn’t feel pain anymore, but that wasn’t true at all. The same amount of pain was there and then there was the pain of his body being put back together. It was different than the pain of an injury, it was much deeper than that, an ache within his bones. Sometimes he thought he could actually feel the skin being knit together and bones mending themselves. 

“That is not the point here, Peter,” he countered, “the point is that if you would have just listened to me, this could have maybe been avoided. You risked not only yourself but your identity too.”

“You’re the one who didn’t listen to me!” Peter tried to sit up but when he did, there was a sharp ache in his gut. He tried to hide the wince, but it didn’t work. When he was coming back from being under anesthesia he had a harder time holding back his emotions. It was part of the reason he hated it so much, it always made him feel like he couldn’t control his own body anymore.

And when you could kill someone with a punch, the thought of that was scary to him. 

“Relax, Pete,” Tony immediately put his hand out but didn’t touch him, “don’t push it.”

There was a pause that hung in the air and Peter could feel what was coming next.

“Jesus, kid. You can’t just step in front of me like that again. That’s just, that’s not happening ever again.”

Tony kept his eyes locked on Peter’s when he spoke, it made him feel uneasy. He could see the hurt in his eyes, the worry. He felt bad, he really did, but Tony wouldn’t have been that lucky. Tony would have died and it would have been on Peter.

He told Tony so. “If you’d gotten shot, you’d die. I knew I’d be okay.”

“There didn’t have to be a shot fired at all, Pete. You should have let me handle it.”

“No,” Peter said, feeling more defiant and annoyed, “I kept telling you something was wrong. You didn’t trust me! I knew something was going to happen. I need to protect you.”

Peter closed his eyes, the pain in his stomach was starting to intensify a little, now that the pain medication was slowly leaving his system. 

“You need more pain meds?” Tony asked Peter shook his head. “If you’re in pain, you need it. Cho said we can give you a bit more. You might burn through it but it’ll help for a little bit longer.”

“Nah,” Peter opened his eyes, “it hurts, but I hate being under more than I hate the pain. I’ll be fine in a bit. I’ll be healed pretty soon.”

Tony reached over and put his hand on Peter’s shoulder, in a well-known gesture. It was amazing how comfortable just a hand on the shoulder felt. Ben used to hug him all the time and wrap an arm around his shoulder. Tony might not be doing the exact same, but it felt the same to him anyway. 

“Tony, I’m sorry,” Peter admitted. “The second I saw the guy reaching around, I knew it was a gun. I knew that we didn’t have time, so I moved.”

“Pete,” Tony’s hand was still on his shoulder, he gave it a little squeeze before pulling away, “I don’t want to keep having this same argument with you, I really don’t. Of course, I trust you. If he would have killed you, that’s on me. I’m the one who brought you into this life and I’m responsible for you and your safety. You need to know when to listen to me.”

Tony paused and Peter had to hold back the tears that loomed in his eyes. He was getting more and more tired, he needed to rest again. He wanted to tell Tony he was sorry again too, wanted to tell Tony that he didn’t want to die and that he couldn’t lose Tony either. 

“Sorry,” he said in a low voice. “I’ll do better.”

“You have to think before you do something. I’m sorry I didn’t react right away to your sense, I get it. But jumping in front of me like that, that can’t happen again.”

Peter nodded his head, sleep was feeling like it was going to rain over him. Tony must have sensed it because he sighed and said in a much gentler tone. “Get back to sleep, you need the rest.”

====

Flying through Queens at night was something that would never get old for Peter. There was nothing in his life that even compared to the feeling. Sometimes he didn’t even have to think about where he was going, Peter was sure he could travel the city with his eyes closed. 

The night was slow, which Peter didn’t mind very much. He’d been out of the medbay for only a week now. While he was good as new, it was his first night out since and he was thankful for the ease. 

Without realizing it he found himself back at his greenhouse. He would go there every once in a while, he liked to sit on the roof still. The greenhouse was still abandoned, nothing left of his things. 

Tony hadn’t yelled at him again, but it still bothered him a little. Tony didn’t trust him, not right away. He had thought Peter was just overreacting, even when Peter kept telling him that something was wrong. And Peter knew his spider-sense didn’t always spell things out, but he shouldn’t have to beg Tony not to do something.

All Peter could think about at that moment was the night Ben got shot. How Peter felt it, knew it was coming but didn’t move. He just let it happen. If he knew something bad was going to happen, he was always, without a doubt, going to try and stop it. He just wished Tony understood that a little better sometimes.

He sat on the ledge of the roof, his heels hitting against the bricks. After a minute or so he heard footsteps on the roof. It only took a second for him to recognize the sound of the steps.

“I thought you were supposed to be a super spy,” Peter said, without turning around. 

He heard Natasha laugh and then she was sitting next to him on the roof. “I wanted you to know I was here.”

“Sure Jan,” Peter said with a smile. “Did Tony send you to babysit me tonight?”

“Nope,” she said, her shoulder bumped him playfully, “I was out and about. Caught sight of you swinging around and thought I’d say hi.”

“Hi,” he said, turning and smiling at her. He didn’t really believe her story, it was more likely Tony mentioned something to her and she’s making sure he doesn’t push him or do anything stupid. He liked Natasha, for a super-spy assassin she was pretty easy to get along with. She never pushed him very hard, either with training or with talking. 

“Hi, Petey,” she echoed.

“Didya come to give me some age-old wisdom about not jumping in front of bullets?” He asked, his heels bounced off the brick.

She laughed a little, a sly smile on her face. “Not like it’ll change anything, will it? I know you, Pete, we all do. You’d jump in front of that bullet every single time. I don’t blame you, there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for family either.”

Peter leaned and bumped her shoulder slightly, as she did before. “I thought self-sacrifice is why I’m in trouble so much.”

“You aren’t in so much trouble for that, which I think, is what you’re missing. Tony’s mad because you didn’t look for any other solution. You jumped before you you thought.”

“That’s not always true,” Peter said quickly, he didn’t like arguing with people and it seemed like that was all he was doing nowadays. “What was my other choice in that matter? Nat, sometimes you don’t have time to think of another plan. I know what happens when you hesitate. ”

“And you’re right, but that’s why you need to work on trusting everyone else around you. Trust in our abilities to keep you safe. Trust us to help you carry some of that weight you let sit on your shoulders. I'm not going to lie, sometimes you do need to act fast, but from what Tony told us, there could have been other alternatives.”

Peter kicked his heel particularly hard against the brick wall. “Yeah, you guys are listening to Tony. None of you are listening to me. I knew something was wrong in the car, I tried to tell Tony that but he didn't listen. If you want me to keep trust Tony, then you all need to trust me too."

“I’m not saying we’re all perfect here. We’ve got to work together and yeah, we could all use a lesson in trust sometimes. I didn't come up here to upset you, Peter. I wanted to make sure you were doing okay too. Taking a hit for someone, that's a tough thing for some people to bounce back from."

Peter nodded, leaning back on his hands a little, he looked up at the night sky. Nat joined him in that position. “I'm fine, I'm glad I did it. I'm glad I saved Tony and that's all that matters to me. I'm sorry Nat, I don't want to fight about stupid things. I just, I want to do good. I want to help people and I want to save people. I can't understand how that's a complicated thing." 

“You do, I know that for a fact, help people Peter. You help a lot of people and you are doing a lot of good. But doing this, what we do, isn't easy. It's not a black and white thing, there's so much gray in there. You have to learn to find a balance of doing the right thing, the good thing and making sure you aren't sacrificing yourself. You have a responsibility to yourself too, to make sure that you're not just needlessly throwing yourself out there." 

“I don't have some weird death wish or anything," Peter said feeling a little defeated. He had a responsibility to everyone in Queens, to Tony, to the team, to keep them safe. 

"I know you don't and I don't think anyone else thinks that. Tony cares about you, the whole team does. You're just so young, none of us want to see you burn out already. Trust me," Nat paused, her voice was sounding a lot rougher then Peter had ever heard it, "when you start doing things like this at your age, you could end up in a lot of bad situations. None of us want that for you."

Peter didn't know a whole lot about Natasha's past, just little bits of information he'd heard here and there. What he did know, was it probably wasn't a very good early childhood. 

“You know I lived up there, in that greenhouse before Tony," he said almost casually, nodding his head to the old greenhouse.

He knew she most likely knew that. Most of the team didn’t know about Peter’s life besides that he was an orphan. It wasn’t anything he liked to talk about, especially with the Avengers. He didn’t want them to think he was helpless.

She nodded her head, not saying if she knew already or not. “It’s quiet here.”

“Surprisingly, so. It’s just quiet enough at night that I can relax,” Peter answered. "It was also pretty safe, no one ever came and bothered me. I know you guys are looking out for me, but I've handled myself pretty well on my own for a while. Especially being Spider-man."

"You have," Nat said, she looked away from the greenhouse to catch Peter's eyes. "but that doesn't mean you still have to."

They lapsed into silence, Peter thinking about what Natasha had been saying to him. To trust the team, the family he's being pushed into. He wished it was easy, he wished he could just go with it. But he couldn't. Gaining these people in his life also meant protecting them. He couldn't do that very well if they didn't also trust him. 

"Alright," Nat said and then stood up, she stretched her arms above her head, her shoulders made a very uncomfortable popping sound. "I think it's time for good little spiders to retire back to their webs."

Peter stood up and extended his hand out to her. “Want a ride back to the Tower?”

She scoffed at him. “I’ll pass. I saw you drop the burrito you were trying to eat while swinging earlier tonight.”

He stuck his tongue out at her. “I’ll make sure to hold on to you, you’re more important than a burrito.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm loving adding in more of the team to this! 
> 
> I also really didn't want to force too much drama between Peter & Tony. I tend to dislike manufactured drama for the sake of plot and such. My biggest pet peeve about stories is when two characters don't just talk about it, especially when it would make sense! So while things aren't perfect, Tony & Peter are going to try this communication thing out for a spin. ;)


	4. Chapter 4

After Peter had gotten out of the hospital, Clint invited them out to dinner at his family’s farm. Peter had met Clint’s family a few times before but hadn’t visited the farm yet. If it wasn’t for the fact that he wanted to give Peter a break, Tony probably wouldn’t have gone. 

He was sitting out on the porch, watching Peter try to teach Cooper and Lila to do a backflip. It was a nice night, quiet and warm. Sitting out there made Tony want to have his little getaway, maybe a cabin in upstate New York. Somewhere he can take Peter to just get away from life for a bit. 

He heard the sound of the front door open and Clint walked and took a seat next to Tony.

“Glad you guys could come out,” he said, looking out and watching his kids play.

“Yeah well, Peter wanted to.”

“And you didn’t? Come on Stark, you love me and you know it.”

“Sure, just keep on thinking that Barton.”

They lapsed into a comfortable silence. Tony hadn’t blamed Barton for his actions during the Accords. He knew now, most of all, just how much he wanted to protect his family. He looked over at Barton and sighed. He knew he should ask him for advice, it wasn’t his best idea, but there wasn’t much he wouldn’t do if it helped him with Peter.

So he jumped on in.

“How do you deal with the risks involved with having a family while doing what we do?” He looked out at the kids playing. Peter was walking on his hands, much to the delight of Cooper. 

“Not easily sometimes,” he answered, he took a drink of the pop he had in his hand. He paused before continuing, his eyes looking straight out at his kids.

“Being a superhero comes with occupational hazards. You can die, I can die, my kids can die, anyone can die at any time. Your whole world can come to an end in a snap of a finger,” he snapped his fingers in front of his face as he said it, “poof, gone.”

“Comforting,” Tony replied with a snort. 

“Not supposed to be, Stark. That’s the whole point. You don’t know what’s going to happen to you or Pete. The kid’s got a heart of gold and he’s going to always want to protect you. But honestly, you just gotta come to terms with it. You have to come to terms with what you’ll do next time he does something stupidly heroic. Or next time a big bad comes around and causes harm. The only way I can sleep at night is knowing that if something happens to my family, I’m going to straight-up murder a lot of people. Find who did it and take them out and if I can’t then I’m taking out as many bad guys as I can.”

“Wow,” Tony replied, raising his eyebrows, “you’ve thought about this before haven’t you?”

“It’s what works for me. Knowing that I do my damnedest to keep them safe and if I can’t, then I’m going to keep going,” he said looking over at Tony. “What would you do if something happened to Peter? Don’t think about it, just say the first thing that comes to mind.”

“I would tear the universe apart to get him back again,” Tony answered without thinking. It was true, it was always going to be true. 

“Exactly and if I asked Peter that question? He’d answer the same thing. That’s what you’ve gotta focus on. Knowing that if something did happen, you’re ready. Nothing I can say here Stark is going to make this any better. Rogers doesn’t understand what it’s like to have a child, but he does know what it’s like to love someone. Look at what he did for Barnes, he tore the world apart just for the chance to get him back. Hell, he tore the team apart, he tore SHIELD apart bit by bit until Barnes was safe. There was always going to be someone, you’d tear the world apart for, damn the consequences.”

“You know,” Tony started, “your advice really didn’t have any real advice to it.”

Barton smirked and laughed. “Yeah well, it’s because I honestly have no idea what I’m doing most of the time. I’m just going out there and doing what I can to protect the people I love. That’s the best any of us can do.”

And he was right, of course. The more Tony thought about it, the more he realized there was never going to be an answer. The best they can do is prepare Peter, make sure he’s ready. What happens after that, well that’s life. And one day if something happened to him, well, if saving Peter means letting the world burn, then maybe Tony’s going to be okay with that. 

“Tell anyone I asked you for advice Barton and I will end you.”

He laughed again, this time a lot louder. “Come off it Tony, everyone knows how soft you are for your kid.”

Laura’s voice came from inside the house suddenly, calling out for the kids to come in and help her carry the food outside. There was a picnic table out in the yard to eat at. It wasn’t Tony’s favorite thing in the world but he’d make do.

Barton had gotten up and Tony followed behind him. Before they got into the house Barton turned and faced him. “It looks good on you, Tony.”

“Hm?” Tony questioned, confused. Cooper suddenly raced past them into the house, with Peter hot on his heels, shouting about cheating. 

“Fatherhood,” Barton answered and then followed his family back into the house.

====

“So, he was just some crazy guy?” Peter asked from his spot at the end of the table. He wasn’t really invited into Avenger meetings often, but this one was regarding the car situation. There wasn’t any way he was sitting this one out - he did take a bullet for his troubles.

“That’s what it looks like,” Rhodey answered. “We couldn’t find any information linking him to any organization.”

“He has very little online presence,” Vision added, “aside from social media. Although he didn’t use it very much. This bank account was clean as well.”

“It was all just… a coincidence?” Peter questioned again. He couldn’t fit the feeling that something was right with that. It just was too odd, getting a flat tire and then the car behind them tries to pull a gun on them. “A crime of opportunity?”

He cast his eyes down at Tony who just shrugged. “Wrong place, wrong time. It happens.”

“We checked the tires,” Steve added, “there wasn’t any damage that looked to be purposeful. The nail we found could have come from anywhere. There’s no evidence the guy knew you two were leaving the tower when you did.”

Peter didn’t like the explanation, not at all. “My sense went off the second that car was close to us. I knew something was going to happen.”

“We don’t know how your tingle works,” Tony said.

“You might not, but I do!” He said, maybe a little too loud. Everyone looked at him, giving him an almost pitying look. “I know what I felt, that guy wanted us to have a problem. He was bad news.”

“Peter,” Vision said, sounding ever so much like the perfect mediator. “We are not discounting what you felt in that moment, however, the evidence seems to suggest this was indeed a coincidence.”

“But,” Peter started again, he never felt more like a child then he did at that moment, but he didn’t care, he knew how he felt. “Crimes of opportunity usually aren’t kidnappings! What was he going to do? Do you guys even ask him? Shoot Tony and then what? Ask for money? He knew who we were.”

“Pete,” Rhodey started, he looked over at Peter with the face he usually reserves for Tony when he’s a little too out of control. “It doesn’t matter now. He’s behind bars, he isn’t getting out. He didn’t seem to be working with anyone. Case closed.”

Everyone looked at him to see if he would speak up again, but he didn’t. Instead, he leaned back into this chair and crossed his arms over his chest. If they were going to treat him like a child, then he’ll just act like one. The meeting ended soon after, Peter was the first one up but someone grabbed his arm before he made it out the door.

He figured it was Tony, but when he turned around, it was Rhodey. “Sit and talk with me for a sec?”

Peter nodded and they stood until everyone else left and then they sat side by side in the chairs. Rhodey turned his towards Peter.

“Are you trying to be the cool Uncle now?” Peter asked, he was kidding but his tone was a little harsher than he intended it to be. A slight scowl appeared on Rhodey’s face, so he quickly interjected. “Sorry. I’m being a brat.”

Rhodey laughed and Peter felt a little bit better. “I get it. You just want your voice to be heard, nothing wrong with that.”

“There is when no one believes you.”

“We all believe you, Pete. It’s just, we all don’t know what your powers really are. I know you said you do but, well, we haven’t really tested anything.”

Peter leaned back in the seat, sighed, and crossed his arms again. “Well, I have tested things. I’ve lived with these abilities for more than 2 years now. I know what they mean. I survived on the streets of New York with these abilities. If I didn’t have my spider-sense, I’d be dead ten times over, so believe me when I know I trust myself.”

Rhodey was silent for a moment, he sighed and shook his head. “I get it.”

“You keep saying that, but I don’t think you do. This isn’t like a switch gets flipped, it’s always there. A constant steady hum of anxiety that makes me hyper-aware of every single thing in the universe down to the atom. There’s a part of me that doesn’t truly sleep anymore, that part keeps me completely aware of everything that’s happening. That’s what it’s like normal for me, every single day. But when something bad is going to happen, it’s a whole-body thing. The hairs on my arm stand on end, I get goosebumps, the anxiety shoots up my spine, and every single sense I have zones in on the problem. It’s not that I think something is going to happen, it’s that I know something is going to happen. I know what I saw out there, Rhodey, that guy was coming to kidnap us. He set up the tire problem and he waited.”

Peter breathed heavily, he had worked himself up more then he intended to. He didn’t want to yell at Rhodey but he needed him to understand. Rhodey, for his part, kept a calm expression on his face, he kept his eyes locked on Peter’s.

“Take a deep breath,” he said slowly. Peter didn’t realize he had started hyperventilating a little.

It took a minute, but he got his breathing under control, when he did, he finally looked away from Rhodey. “Sorry.”

“No, no,” Rhodey said, he reached out, putting his hand on Peter’s arm. “You didn’t do anything wrong. It’s like this, we trust you. We trust you a lot, but we aren’t in your head. We don’t know how these things work. You’re a completely new thing for everyone here. Your abilities, they are different and it’s hard to get a grasp on them without seeing them in action. I’m not saying that you’re wrong, none of us are. We’re just… it’s one of those things.”

“So you want to run lab experiments on me?” Peter asked, maybe a little too harshly.

That made Rhodey flinch. “Hell, no. You know us better than that. We want to test what you can do, so we can all understand it better and help you if you need it. We’ve wanted to talk to you about this for a while now. You aren’t anyone’s lab rat. I promise you that.”

Peter sighed, his stomach let out a loud growling sound. “I guess. I still don’t want to drop this whole car thing.”

“That I can’t do anything about right now, but I promise that if something comes up, we’ll investigate it.”

Peter nodded and Rhodey squeezed his arm before letting go and getting up. “I heard that endless pit of yours screaming, let’s get some food in you.”

====

Tony walked into the kitchen to see Peter sitting in front of a large cheese pizza. He was shoving a piece into his mouth. 

“Kid, it’s 10 in the morning, why are you eating pizza?”

Peter shrugged. “I’m always so hungry after I heal from an injury.”

Tony watched as he inhaled a slice of pizza without taking a single breath. It was actually pretty impressive, but Tony wasn’t going to reward that type of behavior. 

Instead, he just stared at Peter, while he sat down across from him. Peter went for another slice but stopped himself before he put it into his mouth. Instead, he hovered it a few inches away. “Um, what’s up?”

“We need to talk,” Tony started, Peter’s face hardened immediately at those words. “It’s nothing bad, or anything.”

Peter put down the slice. “You know saying it's not bad or anything is pretty much confirmation that it’s going to be bad.”

Tony grimaced, Peter kept his eyes locked onto his, not looking away. “But go on,” he said. 

Tony opened his mouth and then shut it again. He had practiced this speech a few times already but found himself floundering before he even started. He wasn’t normally one to practice speeches, he was much better at the off the cuff stuff. But this, he didn’t want off the cuff, he wanted to make sure he said the important things he meant to say. 

He could tell that Peter was getting nervous, his shoulders tensed up more and more the longer Tony was silent. He realized he was probably making the kid go a bit crazy. 

“So, uh,” he started and realized he sounded like an idiot. 

Way to go Stark, the kid’s going to think you’re shipping him out to the moon at this point. He cleared his throat and tried again. “I’ve been thinking about our, uh arrangement.”

“When you say it like that, you sound like my Sugar Daddy, Tony,” Peter deadpanned at him before grinning a little at him.

“Ha, funny kid,” Tony answered, “But seriously, I was thinking about where we are right now, with me being your legal guardian and all.”

“Oh,” Peter said, he looked very uncomfortable. “Um, okay?”

Shit, Tony thought, the kid thinks I’m going to make him leave. “I’m not going to make you leave or anything,” he said quickly. “It’s the opposite actually.”

“Oh.”

“I want to adopt you.”

Out of all the reactions, Tony thought Peter would have, the one did he have was not on the top of his list. Mostly because there was no reaction. He just stared at Tony as he was, shoulder’s a little tense, eyes staring straight into Tony’s. His face remained the same, he didn’t even blink for a whole minute.

Tony was expecting tears, hugs, and maybe some shouting. He certainly expected some kind of reaction. He felt like an entire year went by before Peter finally said something.

“Oh.”

Tony thought he had gotten a good read on the kid, but the look on Peter’s face was one he’d never seen before. Tony didn’t know what to take from it, he was a little lost for words.

“Oh?” Tony echoed. “Uh, is that good? I mean, I was thinking it would be. Adoption is a permanent thing and I don’t want you to ever leave. It would also help with your inheritance.”

“Oh.”

“Okay, Pete. You’re gonna have to give me a little more than just one word. You’re kinda scaring me here.”

Peter took a very deep and loud breath and then let it out. He seemed to blink back into himself. He relaxed a fraction of an inch but still looked a little dazed. “That’s, um, thank you. I mean, wow. I didn’t know if you... I mean I don’t know. Um, wow. Tony. That’s a lot and I don’t know. Can I think about it?”

He said everything very quickly and it almost made Tony smile but then he realized what Peter had said, or what Peter didn’t say. He didn’t say no and he didn’t say yes. Peter was still looking at him with a blank expression and Tony tried his best to play it off.

“Yeah,” Tony said quickly, “if you want to think about it. You can. We have awhile. But uh, Pepper has all the papers ready for the adoption, whenever you want it. If you do.”

Peter nodded his head. “Thanks, I mean it. Sorry, I just, didn’t expect this and it’s a bit overwhelming. I’m sorry.”

Tony got up and walked over to him, putting his arm around Peter’s shoulder and pulling him into a hug. Peter’s face pressed up against Tony’s chest. “Don’t worry about it. I just wanted to mention it to you, alright? It’s totally up to you. No matter what your answer is, this will always be your home. Take your time.”

He leaned down and kissed the top of Peter’s head, before leaving him to finish his pizza.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Peter's description of spidey sense not letting him sleep is lifted from the comics! I can't remember which one but I swear it exists. 
> 
> And yes, heavy with IW & Endgame references. Trust there were more but my husband made me tone it down, lol.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far!! I really loved writing this chapter, finishing it is what ended up driving a lot more of the story forward into what it ended up being about.

The next few days after Tony had sprung the adoption question was a lot harder then Peter thought they’d be. He realized that Tony was expecting more of a positive reaction and not the one he gave him. Truth was, he liked the idea, but at the same time, he didn’t.

Because he didn’t want to be Peter Stark, he wanted to be Peter Parker. 

Tony also happened to ask him the question a week before the anniversary of his parent’s death, so Peter was already feeling weird about it. To make matters worse, Peter was so caught up in what was happening lately, that he actually forgot about the anniversary until the morning of. When he just so happen to be several hours away from the cemetery.

Tony didn't know, Peter never said anything about it. It wasn't something he liked to just bring up in conversation with people. He didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, especially since the whole adoption thing either. He just needed some way to get back into the city for the day. 

He decided to take the chance and ask Tony. “Um,” Peter started, he was leaning over the kitchen counter, as Tony stood in the fridge. “Do you think we can head to the Tower today?”

Tony pulled his head from the fridge. “Why, kiddo? I thought we’re going back next week.”

Peter wasn’t a very good liar, not really. He could get away with small little lies, especially those without details but he would blow it the second someone pressed him. “I forgot something at the Tower that I wanted to work on. I just need to go in today, we can come back tonight.”

Tony had put his head back in the fridge and then finally came out holding a can of pop. He was grumbling. “I swear, we’re going to have to start labeling our food and drink. I tried hiding things but I forget we live with spies,” he turned towards Peter, popping the tab. “Can it wait? I’ve got a few things I need to finish today.”

“Oh,” Peter said, taking a deep breath. Maybe he could get a taxi or something. He wasn't stupid enough to try and swing there. “Okay. Yeah, it can wait.”

“I can take you,” Wanda said from behind him, she had walked in without Peter realizing it. “If you’d like. I wouldn't mind a day in the city.”

Peter looked at her and then to Tony. Wanda had gotten her license a while ago but he’d never driven anywhere with her before. Tony looked between the two of them and then shrugged. “I guess. Will you be back for dinner? Sam suggested we do a taco bar and that sounds perfect.”

“Yeah, we can be,” Peter said, he looked to Wanda. “When are you ready to go?”

“I can be ready in 10 minutes. Meet me in the garage?”

“You can take one of my cars,” Tony said, “keys are in the locker in the garage. Treat her well.”

Fifteen minutes later they were on the road. Peter felt bad for lying to Wanda about wanting to go back into the city. He wasn’t embarrassed about wanting to visit his parents. He was used to going alone, besides when Ben would bring him. It always just seemed like something he shouldn't drag other people too. 

They drove in silence for a bit, the radio on an old rock station that Tony liked to listen to. Peter turned the dial a few times, trying to find something a little more modern. He found a good station and went back to silence. A few minutes later Wanda started to talk about Buffy. They were finally on the last season and she had a lot of thoughts about it. He was glad Wanda was willing to start up the conversation, he didn’t feel like he could come up with anything to say. 

Peter had a lot of fun showing Wanda new things, especially American pop culture. She had started sharing some of her own cultures with him too. He especially loved the treats she’d bake him. While he’d had kolaches before, he’d never had homemade ones and they were delicious. 

They were an hour away from the city when he realized he’d have to figure out a way to get to the cemetery without telling her. 

“You can drop me off at the Tower,” Peter said, leaning over and turning down the music a smudge. “And then when you’re done, let me know, I can meet you back there.”

“Or,” Wanda said, eyes on the road still, “you can tell me where you really want to go and I can take you there.”

“How’d you know?” Peter asked, dropping any pretense of lying.

“I heard it in your voice,” Wanda answered, she spared him a look, “there was just something…” 

Sometimes he’d forget about Wanda's mind powers. She didn't use them on people unless she had to and never on him. She didn't need to use them all the time however, she could always tell when people were feeling particularly strong emotions. 

Peter nodded and then took a deep breath. He might as well tell her, it’d be easier to get a ride, quicker too. “It’s the anniversary of my parent’s death and I want to visit them.”

Wanda was quiet. “Why couldn’t you tell Stark?”

Peter shrugged. “Dunno, it just felt weird. I feel like he’d make a big deal out of it and I just don't want that.”

“I understand,” Wanda said softly, “I too don’t like to have many people around on the anniversary of my parent’s deaths. I hope you aren’t mad that I’m intruding. I can drop you off at the cemetery if you’d like.”

“Actually,” he replied, “I wouldn’t mind it if you came with me.” 

He knew if there was anyone who could understand how he felt today, it would be Wanda. She’d lost just as much as he did. 

He caught the smile on Wanda’s face. “Just tell me where to go.”

Forty-five minutes later they pulled up to the cemetery gates. He directed Wanda down the familiar paths until they reached a dead end. They parked and he walked out, Wanda following behind him. 

They walked through the grass until he stopped by a large willow tree. The site of the tree always comforted him, even as a kid. When he used to come here when he was much younger, he could barely make it to them before he’d start crying. He used to find it too overwhelming to be there, knowing his parents were dead was hard, but actually seeing the graves made it so real. And then a time came where he wasn't very hard anymore, he'd be able to come and talk and that made him sad. He couldn't figure out what felt worse to him, crying all the time or just being okay with it. Ben used to tell him it was part of grieving and moving on, to be able to accept it but he always felt like it was unfair to their memory. And now, years later, here he was almost forgetting about it like it didn't even matter to him anymore. 

As he arrived, Wanda stayed a bit behind him, he was grateful for the little bit of space now. He realized he didn’t have flowers with him and his heart dropped. He always brought flowers with him, Ben would help him pick them out when he was a kid. Ben would always tell him whatever flower he picked was his parent’s favorites, it took Peter a while to realize he’d bring different flowers each year. He’d bring them other things too, sometimes papers he got good grades on, sometimes toys he liked. The older he got, the less he brought, and now, he had nothing.

“Hi,” he said softly to the graves, “Mom, Dad, Ben. I’m sorry I haven’t been here in a while. A lot of stuff has happened since the last year, I have a new home now, with Tony Stark,” he laughed a little, “I know, it doesn’t sound real, but it is. I spend time in the tower and at the Avengers Compound of all places. He takes good care of me, makes sure I'm happy. I'm back at school now too, Midtown again. Tony's a good... good..."

What was Tony to him now? A guardian? A replacement? A new Dad? Tears started to come down his face without permission. He hated this, suddenly, being here. He felt like he was doing his parents and uncle a disservice now. Here he was, talking about the life Tony gave him, the life that didn't have any of them in it. He couldn't bring up the adoption, couldn't think about even mentioning it. 

He felt Wanda’s hand on his shoulder. “It’s okay Peter,” she said softly. “It’s okay. Why don’t we sit down?”

He responded by sitting cross-legged on the ground. She followed after him, sitting close enough that their knees touched. He held his hand out and she took it, interlocking their fingers. They’d never held hands before, but it felt good to have her there. Her hand in his was comforting and grounding. 

She squeezed his hand and he squeezed back a little. “I was seven when my parents died. I think I've finally realized that I’ve been alive longer than I had them for. I feel like I might start actually forgetting who they are,” he said softly, “especially now, with Tony. I didn't have many memories of them before. Almost everything I know about them is from what my Uncle Ben told me. And now that he's gone... there's nothing left that connects me to them."

“You’ll never forget them, Peter. You are your connection to them, they will always be apart of you."

He wiped his eyes with the back of his other hand. “Tony asked me if I wanted him to adopt me,” he admitted to her. “I don’t know if I can. I feel like it would be leaving them behind forever and being someone else."

She didn’t say anything right away, but having her next to him was already helping. “You aren’t leaving your family behind. You’re just adding to it. You can bring your parents and uncle with you to your new family. You know the trdelník cake I made you? That was my mother’s recipe. I find the little ways I can bring them to life in what I do every day. I share stories with the team, about Pietro, about my parents. It isn’t always happy, but it doesn’t need to be. I don't have anyone left either," she said softly. "But I'm never without them. I make sure of that."

“Can we share stories together?" He asked her. He'd heard her talk about her brother and parents in the past, but he'd like to hear more about them. 

“Of course, I'd love to hear about your family. I've only heard you talk about your Uncle a little bit, I would love to know more about them."

“Oh,” Peter said, suddenly realizing he didn’t introduce them. He knew it was stupid, but he felt like he should. “I should introduce you. Wanda, this is my Mom and Dad, Richard and Mary, and my Uncle Ben Parker. Guys, this is Wanda Maximoff.”

“Hi,” Wanda said brightly looking at the graves, “It’s very nice to meet you all. Peter is a wonderful person, I know you’re all very proud of him.”

He smiled, the tears finally starting to subside a little. “Thank you, Wanda. Can we stay here for a little longer? Until we have to go back.”

“Of course, Peter. We can stay here as long as you’d like. I think you should tell your family about what you've been up to lately. I'm sure they'd love to hear all about it."

====

Wanda didn’t bring up the adoption thing and Peter was glad for it. They spent the drive back to the Compound talking about family and sharing stories that made them both happy and sad at the same time. It was nice, Peter really didn’t have that with anyone else, except for Ned. He’d talk about Ben with him occasionally, talk about stories and memories. Ned spent a lot of time with Peter and Ben, they had a lot of good times to think about.

When Peter got back to the Compound, after stuffing his face with tacos, he headed up to his room to call Ned. He knew his friend would be waiting for his call today. They usually spent time together if they could. 

He pulled up Ned on Facetime and smiled when his friend's face filled the screen. “Pete!” Ned exclaimed. “How are you today? Are you at the Compound?”

“Hey Ned, yeah I’m here today. Wanda took me into the city to visit my parents. I would have called you but uh, it was a last-minute type of thing and you know..” he trailed. He’d never invited Ned to visit his parents and it was more for Ned’s sake than his. He didn’t want to be a blubbering mess in front of his best friend. 

“I’m glad you got to go. Are you coming back soon? I miss you.”

“I miss you too. Yeah, we’ll be back next week. Tony already said you can spend the night when we do. Wanda might come with too, she wants us to take her site seeing.”

Ned’s face blushed slightly. He had a very small crush on Wanda after their first meeting and even though she was dating Vision. “Oh,” he said and then smiled, “that’s, uh, cool.”

“You’ll be fine,” Peter said, “she likes hanging out with us, for some reason. But uh, she keeps trying to convince me to invite MJ.”

Peter could feel his face blush now too. He had a small crush on Michelle but was pretty sure she didn’t really like Peter that much. She hung out with them but not really. “Ohh, she likes you,” Ned cooed at him, “I can tell. She wouldn’t hang out with anyone unless she wanted to! She did tell us to call her MJ! I think you should, she'd get along with Wanda.”

Peter laughed and changed the subject to their expectations for their senior year. Peter was both excited and scared of the prospect because after that came the idea of going to college. Tony had been dropping a million not so subtle hints about MIT to him and Peter wasn’t too sure about it. MIT wasn’t in Queens and that’s where Spider-man needed to be. There was a lull in the conversation for a minute and Peter realized he was holding back what he really wanted to talk to Ned about.

“So, uh, don’t freak out when I tell you this, okay? And you can’t tell anyone, like, no one. Not even your Mom and Dad.”

“Is this,” Ned said conspiratorially, “you know who business?”

“Not really,” Peter answered, he paused before going on. “Tony asked if I wanted to be adopted by him.”

Ned’s reaction was most likely the one Tony was hoping to have gotten. His face turned red, he let out a surprised yelp and then dropped his phone on the table. Peter laughed as he got a view of blackness but could still hear Ned shouting in the background. A second later his friend came back into view. “You said yes, right?”

“Um, no. I said maybe?” he answered truthfully, “Actually, I don't think I even gave him a real answer. It just took me by surprise. I didn't think he'd want to do something like that."

“Pete. Petey. Peter. My dude. What? Why wouldn't he want to adopt you? He already treats you like a son."

“I dunno,” he said shyly, “I really didn't think Tony Stark would want to adopt a random kid from Queens. Everything is just happening so fast and unexpected."

“Ah,” Ned said, looking a little embarrassed, “and it’s bad timing for you, isn’t it? Does Mr. Stark know about what day it is?”

“No, I never told him. I don’t know how to just say something like that. Oh, thank you for wanting to adopt me Tony, but you asked me to close to the anniversary of my parent’s death.”

Ned was silent and Peter felt bad for a second. “Sorry, Ned. I’m just, it’s weird. I don’t know what I want and it’s weird. I feel like I should want to and I know it's a good thing but at the same time, I feel like... I shouldn't want to. That I maybe just don't deserve it."

“I’m sorry,” Ned said softly and then, “I’m here if you need to talk about it. I can help you figure it out. And you do, deserve it you know? You're a superhero. You should be adopted into a family of other superheroes too."

“Can I tell you something else that’s really stupid?” he asked in a rush of words. 

“As if you don’t already,” Ned joked back but Peter didn’t laugh, instead he looked down, trying to will always the flush of red coming up on his face. "Hey, talk to me, what's up?"

“I don’t have anything left. From our apartment, uh, after Ben died. I don’t know what happened to it, but um, I lost all the pictures I had, of my parents. And Ben. And everything else and I feel like, it means I’m gonna really forget them now. Like, what if I never see what my parents looked like again? What if I just forget their faces? I haven't heard their voices since I was a kid, I don't even remember what they sound like anymore." 

Ned was silent and Peter felt like an idiot for bringing this up. He’d been holding onto that thought for such a long time. He thought it would feel better once it was out, but instead, he just felt further down into despair. He kept his head down, not wanting to look at his friend. He shouldn't have to bring this all onto Ned, shouldn't have to burden him with these feelings.

“Peter,” Ned finally said, he could hear the tears and worry in Ned’s voice. He didn’t mean to make his best friend cry about this. “I’m sorry. Let me help you figure this stuff out. I can figure out what happened to Ben’s stuff. It had to go somewhere right? Or you could ask Ms. Potts, she got some of your stuff back didn’t she? There's a way to fix this, I know there is. I can hack social services for you, they'll have information on where your stuff went. I'll hack anything you need me to, I promise."

Peter sniffed, realizing he had started crying as well. He held the phone away from his face for a moment, but he knew Ned could hear him anyway. 

He took a second and then finally looked back up at his best friends, their eyes matching with puffiness.

"Thanks," he said softly and then smiled. "You don't have to hack anything for me, but uh, if you can...," he trailed knowing that Ned would do it even if Peter told him not to, it's the exact thing that made Ned so wonderful. He always made sure to look out for Peter, no matter what Peter had to say about it.

“Let me try, I promise I’ll do whatever it takes.”

Peter smiled. “Thanks, Ned. Thanks.”


	6. Chapter 6

“This was such a bad idea,” Peter moaned leaning against the wall. He kept his eyes firmly planted towards the entrance of the girl’s bathroom. “They are talking about me, I just know it.”

“Paranoid much?” Ned asked he stepped in front of Peter blocking his view. Peter glared at him. “The only person that’s going to make this a bad experience is you! You’re,” Ned lowered his voice, “Spider-man, this is like nothing compared to what you’ve done already.”

“Spider-man,” he replied behind closed teeth, he stepped to the left the bathrooms back in view, “doesn’t have to deal with crushes and friends trying to set him up with them and possibly embarrassing them in very public places.”

Ned grinned, he stepped back in front of Peter, who once again glared at his friend. “Ha! I knew it,” he pointed his finger at Peter. “I think that’s the first time you’ve admitted to having a crush on MJ out loud! No denying it now.” 

“Too loud!!” Peter exclaimed he took another step to the left. The Parker Luck meant that there was a pretty high chance Wanda and MJ were right behind Ned, listening to the entire conversation. He was relieved to see for once, Parker Luck was taking a break. 

Peter was a little nervous when MJ and Wanda first met, MJ had immediately set off into a billion questions about the Accords and Wanda’s role. Peter could only stare wide-eyed, trying not to make the situation more awkward, but Wanda seemed to navigate MJ’s questions with ease. No one seemed angry or rude, in fact, it seemed like they both were enjoying a rational discussion. 

And then they started to laugh and suddenly Peter felt very unsure about the whole thing. It was one thing to be friendly, it was another for them to be giggling while looking at him. He was convinced they were in the bathroom whispering about him, sharing secrets or worse, embarrassing stories. 

He hadn’t really had many experiences bringing together his Peter Parker side and Spider-man side. Yeah, he was the same person but Wanda knew him as Parker Parker & Spider-man, while MJ really just knew the Peter Parker part. Even Ned knew him more as Peter Parker than Spider-man.

He liked keeping these things separated, it kept people safer. Ned and MJ wouldn’t be in the crosshairs of someone out to get Spider-man and Wanda and the Avengers wouldn’t have to hear about all the embarrassingly stupid things Peter Parker ends up doing. 

But now, he realized, that might end up changing. 

“You know you have like crazy good hearing if you’re that concerned go take a listen,” Ned suggested, taking a step to the right again. 

“Ew, no. I really don’t want to hear what goes on in the bathroom. I’d rather stand here and wallow in my self-pity.” He had run out of space to move to the left again, so instead, he moved his head to look behind Ned. Good timing too, because the second he did he spot MJ and Wanda already on their way over. “Ah, here they come. Act natural.” Peter leaned against the wall, trying his best to look like he hadn’t been a ball of anxiety waiting for them. 

Ned gave him a very confused and amused look, he turned around and started to wave at the girls as they walked over. Peter tried his best to put on his, totally natural not freaking out face. The way Wanda glanced at him, he guessed he wasn’t succeeding. MJ was looking at the map she was handed when they walked in, blissfully unaware that Peter looked like an idiot, thankfully.

“Alright boys,” Wanda announced, “where do we go first?”

Wanda was dressed in her normal casual attire, she didn’t bother with any kind of disguise. The museum was busy, it was easy enough for her to blend in. Especially since she was with random teenagers and not her team. She looked relaxed too, it made Peter feel a little more at ease. He was still nervous just looking over at MJ but that was never going to go away.

They decided to head over to the Hall of Biodiversity since it was close by. As they entered, Wanda and Ned, in what Peter considered to be a plan they devised earlier, managed to pair off and get a few feet ahead of Peter and MJ. 

Peter tried hard to play it cool, he had been a few steps ahead of her, but slowed so he’d be alongside her. They silently made their way over to the giant Spectrum of Life wall. They paused in front of an informational panel, Peter pretended to read it.

“Thanks for coming along,” he said, not looking over at MJ, keeping his eyes locked in front of him. 

She shrugged. “Better than doing nothing.”

Peter shrugged as well. “Yeah, I guess.”

They silently stood in front of the panel, Peter wasn’t really looking at anything. Things just sort of blurred as he tried to think of something smart and witty to say. He didn’t know when he became a complete idiot around MJ, but it was a rather new development. 

He'd always been okay with her, she barely talked or Ned. But the second she showed an interest in him, Peter’s brain went offline. He couldn’t think of a single thing worth saying, so he went with nothing. 

They started to walk slowly down the exhibit, stopping every few seconds to look at the wall. Peter couldn't tell if MJ was actually enjoying herself, or just bored out of her mind. 

Finally, after what seemed like a year-long silence, MJ started to talk again. “I’m glad you came back to school.”

“Oh, yeah. Me too.”

“Ned was really whiny about not having his best friend around. He kept sighing dramatically and bringing you up every few minutes. Kind of annoying really.”

Peter smirked, feeling a little brave he looked over at her. “Oh, so you didn’t miss me at all?”

“I missed the level of awkwardness you bring to the table. You were always good for a good crisis drawing or two,” she said, glancing over at him, Peter could feel his entire face blushing now. "Don't get me wrong, Ned's awkward and all, but I like your brand of awkward."

“I like your drawings,” he blurted out suddenly, without really thinking. 

She grinned over at him and Peter though for a second she was blushing as well. "Thanks."

They caught up to Ned and Wanda a moment later, the two of them were standing around the exit of the exhibit with goofy grins on their faces, Peter internally groaned. He shot them both a look, but neither seemed to care. MJ was smiling still, she had to know what was going on, she was certainly smart enough to see through Ned and Wanda’s plan. He just hoped she wasn’t walking with him out of a misplaced sense of pity. 

After some discussion and looking over the map, they made their way through the museum, stopping at random exhibits here and there. Ned and Wanda would occasionally stay behind or walk ahead, leaving Peter and MJ to have small moments of conversation or silence along the way. It was actually kind of nice.

After an hour they arrived at the theater, which was showing a movie on Humpback Whales. Tony had purchased them their tickets, whatever level it was, allowed them to see any of the special movies. 

“Ohh, let’s see it!” Wanda said, with far too much excitement. Peter knew exactly what the plan was before she even finished her sentence. And just as he figured, somehow MJ and Peter not only sat next to each other but Wanda and Ned managed to make an excuse to sit in the row behind them. He could hear them giggling as they took their seats and he attempted to glare at them as he sat in his.

The auditorium was huge, the massive screen loomed in front of them. MJ was sitting on the end and there was only one empty seat in their row, next to Peter. They still had 15 minutes to spare before the movie began. Peter awkwardly moved his arm from leaning on the single armrest between them to his lap about 10 times in a row before MJ turned her head to look at him.

“You alright?” She asked. Peter couldn’t quite read the expression on her face, maybe she was annoyed? He suddenly worried she’d suggest she switch seats with Ned or Wanda now. 

“Yeah, sorry. Just, uh, don’t know what to do with my arm?” He said, in what sounded more like a question than an actual statement. 

MJ laughed and rolled her eyes. “Peter, just put her arm on the armrest. It’s okay.”

He sighed and put it down gingerly and looked over at MJ. She nodded encouragingly at him, before giving me a wide grin. 

“Wanda invited me to your birthday party,” she said conversationally, “at the Compound.”

“Ugh, really? He questioned but then realized he sounded upset she was going, so he quickly added. “I mean, uh, I was going to invite you myself. She just jumped the gun.”

He was not really going to invite MJ to his birthday party since he knew Tony was going to embarrass the hell out of him. He wanted to invite her, of course, but he also really enjoyed having some kind of dignity left when it came to her.

“Cool, I’ve always wanted to meet former war criminals, billionaires, and master assassins. They seem like a fun bunch.” 

Peter shrugged. “They are all very boring. It’s kind of ridiculously domestic sometimes, it blows my mind watching Bucky Barnes eat ice cream straight out of the container. And once you get past all of the stupidly expensive things, it’s really just kinda a normal place.”

“Well, I mean I wouldn’t expect you to think anything less, now that you’re in the 1%.”

"Oh." Peter flinched, he wished she wouldn’t have said that. He’d been battling the idea of being rich now since he arrived at the Tower. It was hard to adjust going from working class to upper class and he didn’t want people to think he’s above them now. He barely used any money, the most expensive thing he had was his Spider-man suit. He still bought his clothing from department stores, much to Tony’s constant dismay. It was just another thing that he felt was chipping away at being Pete Parker. 

At school he did everything he could to fit back into his old lifestyle, never trying to flaunt the Starkphone or laptop Tony had gotten him. Everything he took was out of necessity, never out of greed or want. He stole wore the same geeky shirts, the same run-down falling apart shoes. 

Classmates looked at him differently now, it was to be expected, but he tried really hard to appear completely and utterly normal.

“I’m sorry,” she said quickly, she had her arms crossed and she looked away from him. “I didn’t mean it like that. I know you’re not… not flaunting it around and stuff.”

“Yeah, it’s okay. I mean, you’re right,” he said honestly, “I live in a giant Tower and spend my time with superheroes. I’m not like the same normal Peter Parker anymore.”

“Of course you are,” she said with a lot more conviction then Peter thought she would, “you’re always going to be Peter Parker. I mean I’m 100% Eat the Rich and when I meet Tony Stark I’ll gladly tell him that.” She paused. “But I don’t think you're a horrible person or anything,” she said, leaning in closer to him. His heart rate jumped and suddenly his throat got very dry. “I think uh, just the opposite I think you’re a good person.”

“Um, thanks. You’re not a horrible person. Or anything. I like um, you’re a great person actually. You’re much better than me, trust me. You do all these really important and cool things," he rambled.

They had both leaned in towards each other, their faces closer than they had ever been before. Peter was doing everything in his entire power not to look at her lips, but he was failing miserably. He could hear the sudden increase of her heartbeat, matching the pace of his.

The light dimmed suddenly, interrupting whatever moment the two of them were about to have. She gave him one more smile before leaning back into her seat and looking up at the screen. Peter let out a sigh, his arm still on the armrest between them. 

When the film started, quite suddenly MJ moved her arm and placed it next to his on the armrest. It was a little awkward, they weren’t meant for two people to use. Instead of moving away, he adjusted his arm a little, to give her more room.

In a moment of pure bravery, he laid the back of his hand on the rest, his palm up and fingers open. He refused to look over at his hand, after a moment her hand slipped into his, and then, just like that they were holding hands, fingers interlocking. 

He ignored the tiny giggles coming from behind him, but he couldn’t stop grinning even if he tried.

====

Tony stared up at the hologram of the schematic that hovered in front of his face. If he was counting hours, this would be his 6th straight hour sitting at the same bench trying to work this out. He knew what he wanted to do, knew what was needed but nothing seemed to want to come together.

He couldn’t keep the thought of what Peter had said to him, out of his head. It was a giant distraction, sucking up all of his available brain processing. He didn’t think Peter’s reaction to the adoption would be so… negative. He was just trying to help him, he only wanted the best for Peter.

It was just another time where Tony did what he thought was good, but ended up blowing up in his face instead. 

It had been nearly 2 weeks since Tony asked him and they barely spent more than 10 minutes together. It didn’t come across as on purpose, they’d both gotten suddenly busy but they usually made time for each other. They caught dinner once or twice, but suddenly Tony found himself eating alone in the Tower while Peter was either up in his room or out with friends. 

Instead of trying to dwell on it, Tony went to work on making Peter a new suit, something that would protect his kid a lot better than his current one. It was made of the same nanites he’d created his new suit with. He was working on a way to incorporate Peter’s web-shooters a little better. He knew he liked having them always on and he wanted to make sure he could use them with the new suit.

“Tony?” 

He jumped slightly at the voice but smiled when he turned and saw Pepper standing by the door. He hadn't seen her all week, she was gone somewhere working on something important. He knew the details at one point or another.

“I thought you weren’t coming back until tonight?”

“Ah,” she walked into the room, “it’s 8:00 at night.”

He reached out hugged and kissed her softly. She stood beside him looking over what he was working on. “Are you going to wrap him in bubble wrap if this doesn’t work?”

“Ha,” he said twirling around the suit hologram in front of them. “I’m not that overprotective.”

“Oh, really?” She laughed. She held up her arm, indicating the Starkwatch she had on her wrist. He’d given everyone on the team one, it did many things, including working as a panic button and a way to quickly communicate with the team. 

He might have gone a little overboard with Peter's however. While everyone had a panic button, the second Peter hit his, everyone who had a watch, along with his current location. It also kept up with Peter's vital information, something Tony always had available to him, while other people could access it too but only in cases of emergency.

While it might seem over the top, Peter didn't seem to mind or at least didn't' say anything about it. Tony couldn't help this part of him, there were too many times people he loved were in danger and he didn't know about it right away. He was never going to let that happen to anyone, especially Peter. He might not be able to help Peter in every aspect of his life but this is what Tony knew how to do and there was no stopping him.

“Could have fooled me on that one," she mused. Tony noticed she was looking at him with a hint of worry in her eyes. “Did Peter say anything about the adoption yet?”

“No, he hasn’t said anything. At this point, I’m too afraid to even ask.” He swiped his hand at the hologram, it disappeared from view. 

“He’ll eventually tell you an answer, you just have to give him a bit of time. I don’t think he was prepared for what you asked him. You know him, Tony, he’s made big strides over the last year but he’s still timid about being here. You have to see it from his viewpoint, I don't think this is something he ever thought was even possible.”

She was right, of course. Peter stayed with them, he joined their family willingly but there was always just something lingering in the background. Like he wasn’t 100% sure he was going to stay forever. Tony had done everything he could to make him feel like both the Tower and the Compound were his home. He was hoping the adoption papers would show him that. 

This whole thing with Peter was never, ever something Tony thought would happen in his life. One minute he was just finding Spider-man and then suddenly he had obtained a teenager. While it was so out of the ordinary, it surprised Tony just how natural it all felt. 

“You know,” Pepper continued, “it’s only been two years since he lost his Uncle, I'm sure that's still so fresh for him. From what you’ve told me, he was by myself for a while before you came along. He’s coming from very little and you know, you tend to bring in a lot.”

“I’ve told him,” Tony started, “that I’m not trying to replace Ben or his Dad.”

"I'm sure he knows that and it's so very clear how much Peter adores you, Tony. But he's just a kid, you know that he might not know what he really wants."

Tony looked over at her, she was leaning against the table. She looked tired like she’d just taken a very long flight to get to him. She shouldn’t have to try to make Tony feel better. He’d always considered Pepper one of the best people he’d ever met in his life and he’s been constantly happy to have her around. And surprised at her never-ending patience with him. Especially when he did stupid and unpredictable things, like obtaining a teenager and wanting to bring him into their family.

“You’re okay with me doing this right?” 

He’d talked to her about it, but it was more or less asking her to help him, not really asking if she wanted this either. They’d never talked about kids, they barely talked about getting married. He hadn't thought about what kind of impact that might have on her, or if she was even completely onboard with it.

“Of course,” she answered, giving him a perplexed look. “Why wouldn’t you think I was?”

“We never talked about having kids and here I am just getting us a kid.”

“Us?” she mused, “I didn’t think we both were adopting Peter, I mean we’re not… married.”

“We can change that.”

“Are you asking me to marry you?”

Tony grinned. “Yeah, I guess. I’ve had a ring picked out since the early 90’s really. I think Happy still carries it around in hopes I’ll make an honest woman out of you.”

The look on Pepper’s face was nearly unreadable, but he knew her well enough to know she was happy and maybe a little surprised. “Hmm, well I guess if you’re asking me I’ll have to come up with an answer.”

“I already assumed it was a yes.” He leaned over and kissed her, wrapping his arms around her, holding her tight. She laughed into the kiss.

When they broke apart several minutes later, she looked happy. A smile lighting up her face, she looked a lot less tired suddenly too. 

“I think we should sit down and talk to Peter about the adoption thing. Explain to him the reasons why we’d like to, maybe it’ll be better if we do it as a family unit. And for the record, I love Pete as much as you do. He’s a wonderful kid and he’s only made both of our lives a lot better.”

“I should always listen to you Pep,” he said. “The kid’s staying at his friend’s tonight. Why don’t we go celebrate our engagement?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I did spend like 20 minutes trying to figure out what movie the museum was showing in 2018 (which is my setting for the story time frame) and yes, I did find the answer. Sometimes being a reference librarian comes in really handy when writing, other times it drives you to insanity just for a one sentence line that doesn’t really matter but somehow magically does when you’re trying to write.
> 
> (Randomly when I included the “act natural” line, all I could think about was them doing the IT Crowd scene. V. accurate.)


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And it's finally time for some IronDad & Spiderson (about time, I know!).

There were a lot of things about Tony’s childhood that wasn’t normal. He knew from a very young age that he didn’t live a normal lifestyle. It was pretty clear to Tony early on that money was absolutely not an issue with his family. He could have anything he wanted, there was no limit. Howard didn’t ravish him with gifts, but it was very clear how much different their lifestyle was, even from other wealthy kids. They always just had a lot, whether it was clothing, toys, items, food… things were always in endless supply. If something was wanted, it was got and given without a second thought. 

Despite the seeming overabundance of things, the stuff that Tony never had, was all the things a family should be. He didn’t have family dinners, didn’t go out to get ice cream, didn’t have family trips just for fun. Jarvis took care of him, treated him like his own son, but it was just never the same thing. His Mom cared for him a great deal, but she wasn't always around either. He struggled with it a lot, being given so many things but none of them what he really wanted. It was always one of those things, just seemed out of his reach. 

There never seemed like the right time to have a normal childhood. Tony spent most of his childhood at boarding school, coming home only when absolutely necessary, and then when he was 15 he was in college. And then his parents were gone. Jarvis did what he could, tried to help pick up the pieces but by 21 Tony was running a company, there wasn’t any time left to try and have a childhood. He just gave up on having something like that in his life.

But then he found people, Rhodes, Happy, Pepper, Peter... people he could trust and could take care of in the way he never was. To Tony that meant giving them everything they wanted, showering them with gifts and things, it was the only way he felt like he could provide for them.

The one thing he wanted the most for Peter, was for him to have a meaningful childhood. He didn’t want Peter to be forced to grow up so quickly and miss out on everything a kid was supposed to have. He already knew he might be too late in some aspects but now that he had him, Tony was going to make sure Peter was a kid for as long as he could be.

It wasn’t easy, the kid didn’t have a good start at it. Losing his parents, the spider bite, losing his uncle, and then becoming homeless for a little bit… it wasn’t all sunshine and lollipops, that was for sure. All of those things forced Peter to grow up a lot faster and Tony could already see just how much the kid carried on his shoulders.

So Tony was determined to make up for all the bad things by overloading Peter with nonstop good things. He wanted the kid to have so, so much. 

He might have gone a little overboard occasionally but he literally had money to burn and nothing was off the table. He always felt a little helpless, however, when Peter seemed to be apprehensive about what Tony was trying to give him. Deep down he knew Peter wasn't trying to hurt him, wasn't trying to push him away but Tony didn't know what else he could do for him. 

Tony wanted to do something nice for Peter, as somewhat of an apology before he talked to him with Pepper. He wanted Peter to know that he cared even if he didn’t want to be adopted. He had started doing a new thing where he just asked Peter what he wanted instead of just giving Peter things. If it was up to Tony, he’d taken the kid on some awesome vacation, rented out an entire theme park for a day. But when he asked him, Peter simply suggested they go for ice cream.

There had been a small ice cream shop he frequented with Ben but hadn’t been to in a long time. It was such a perfect thing, something Tony wouldn’t have even thought of, he agreed immediately. 

Tony drove them, giving Happy the night off. Happy insisted they bring security with them, but Tony had his suit at the ready, and Peter’s web-shooters were happily attached to his wrists. Tony also wanted to use the 40-minute drive to try to get Peter talking to him again. He wanted to make sure the kid was comfortable and knew that Tony was doing this because he wanted to, not because he felt like he had to.

“Did you have a good time at the museum?” He asked Peter, who sat in the front seat, eyes on his phone. 

Peter made a noncommittal hum in response. He didn’t think the kid was ignoring him, but now he was a little suspect. Peter would usually at least give him a word one answers, even if he was distracted. 

“Come on, Petey, give me a little more than that.”

Peter put the phone down and turned his head to Tony. “It was fun. Wanda got a lot really well with MJ. Maybe a little too well.”

“Ohh, MJ? I didn’t know you invited her along.”

He could see the blush coming up on Peter’s face suddenly. He didn’t want to tease the kid, but he knew from the little Peter talked about her, he liked her. It was just a little too easy sometimes to make the kid bush.

“Uh,” he started, grabbing his phone again and looking at the screen, “yeah. Wanda brought it up, so I thought it’d be nice.”

“A date perhaps?”

“No, not a date, Tony,” he said with a little whine to his voice, “so please don’t call it that. Or say anything to her. Or anyone else. I’m begging you.”

“Don’t worry kiddo, I’ll keep my mouth shut. I just think it’s adorable that my little Petey-Pie is all grown up and has a crush on a girl!” 

Peter groaned loudly and Tony couldn’t hold back his laugh. After a second he could see the smile on Peter’s still blushing face. 

“You should invite her to the Compound for your big birthday party,” Tony added. 

Peter’s seventeenth birthday was coming up in 3 weeks and Tony was already planning the over the top party at the Compound. He was already considering renting a small petting zoo for the event, no one is ever too old for a petting zoo. He even looked up the cost of renting out a carnival until Pepper reigned him back in. He was still going to do whatever he could to make it a memorable celebration. 

“Too late for that,” Peter said, “Wanda already invited her for me. Because apparently, she’s co-conspiring with Ned to be my wingman.”

Tony laughed, he liked that Peter and Wanda were close, he was hoping it would help Peter integrate into the team more. They pulled up to the ice cream parlor, Tony had to park two blocks away.

“You’re not allowed to be an additional wingman,” Peter jumped in as Tony grinned. “I have more than enough people trying to humiliate me.”

“You must really like this girl.” 

They both exited the car and started down the street. Tony was attempting to do his casual disguise mode of just his normal glasses. Tony was never good at making himself look any different and he wasn’t about to walk around in a baseball cap. Instead, he just learned to deal with people constantly recognizing him, he’d been dealing with it for most of his life.

Peter, on the other hand, was dressed in his usual manner. They had tried very hard to keep Peter’s pictures of the media, it helped that he was a minor, but even Tony Stark couldn’t control everything. The public knew of Peter’s existence, of his relationship with Tony, so it was pretty easy to figure out the kid walking around with Tony was Peter. Thankfully when he was alone, Peter was pretty good at being unassuming and he was rarely bothered. 

“I guess. She’s just, uh, really cool. So yeah, I like her. Alright? Happy?” Peter answered as they crossed the street. He had his arms crossed over his chest and suddenly Tony regretted the joy he had in egging him on.

“I wasn’t trying to be mean about it, Pete. You should invite her and Ned over this week for dinner at the Tower. It’ll be a good introduction to us before she meets the entire family.”

Peter’s face twitched. “The entire family?”

“Yeah,” he replied as they arrived at the shop’s door, “you know, the Avengers, the other people we live with half of the time.”

Peter quickly opened the door for Tony and then held it for the two other people who walked in behind them. 

There was a small line waiting to order and a handful of people sitting at tables inside. A few people looked over at Tony, seemingly recognizing him but no one made a scene. He did spot a small table of girls taking not so stealthy cell phone pictures of them. Peter caught it too and had turned away from them, so his face was obscured. 

“You alright?” Tony asked, moving a little more to block Peter entirely out of their view. Peter was a little tense but when Tony moved, he relaxed a little. 

The kid nodded. “I didn’t realize you consider the team family now.”

“Yeah well, it’s taken some time but I think we’re a family. I liked to think it’s a good thing.”

They moved up closer, Peter started to look at the display of ice cream, there were a lot of choices. “Did you know what you're going to get?” Peter asked him, evading any comments on the family thing.

“What do you usually get?”

“Butter Pecan is my favorite but I also really like the Orange Freeze,” he said, leaning around the couple in front of them to see more of the ice cream on display. 

“You should get both.”

Peter turned around quickly giving him a weird look. “That’s… that’s a lot of ice cream.”

“And you’re complaining?” Tony questioned with a laugh. 

The kid could eat, he could eat a lot when he wanted to. Tony noticed, however, he always tried to keep it to a down low when they were eating out. He knew it was a money thing, no matter how much Tony tried to tell him he didn’t need to be frugal, the kid would avoid anything over $10. He also refused to get anything other than water to drink. Tony tried to explain that a $2 pop meant nothing to him, but Peter refused to listen. Tony was lucky if Peter agreed to order dessert half of the time. Tony had taken to ordering it for the “table” most of the time, just so Peter could have some. 

Peter grinned. “I mean, it’s a lot of ice cream but that doesn’t mean I don’t want that much.”

A few more people came in behind them, Peter tensed up for a few seconds, the small shop was getting a little loud. “Do you want to go back outside? I can grab your food.”

“No,” Peter said, eyes glancing around the room. “I’m good.”

“This is a nice place,” Tony said conversationally, he didn’t know why he was feeling so awkward suddenly. Maybe Peter’s unease was starting to wear off on him.

“Ben liked this place a lot. We’d go here as a celebration treat,” Peter said fondly. “But he was boring with his choices. He’d always just get a vanilla sundae.”

It was rare that Peter actually talked about his Uncle. Tony thought of Pepper’s words from before, that maybe Peter was still struggling with grief. “I wish I could have met him,” Tony said.

“Why?” Peter asked softly. 

“Because,” Tony started, “he raised you to be a really good kid and from what you’ve said, it sounds like a good guy.”

Peter actually smiled at that, Tony felt like he was doing something right for once. “Yeah, he was. He was uh, you know, my best friend and everything. I don’t remember my actual parents, all I really had was him.”

Tony’s heart lurched a little in his chest, Peter never talked about his parents either. “I’m sorry,” Tony apologize, he hoped this wouldn’t turn Peter’s mood, he wanted this to be a good trip, not a sad one.

“It’s okay,” Peter answered. “Wanda said it’s good to talk about them sometimes.”

They arrived at the cashier, Peter ordered his one scoop butter pecan and a small Orange Freeze. Tony went with three scoops of Pistachio Pineapple, Peter made a face of mild disgust at the flavor. 

The cashier recognized him as he handed over his credit card and he ended up having to sign a menu for him and the two other employees. Peter waited to the side, watching the employee scoop their ice cream as the cashier gushed to Tony about something or other. He didn't pay too much attention, he had his eyes mostly on Peter. He wanted to make sure he wasn’t getting more uncomfortable. 

Tony ended up taking a few selfies with a couple more people before they were able to get out of the shop. Peter stood off to the side for all of them, trying to avoid the giggling girls who were taking a few more cell phone photos. Tony could see the blush on his face and the uncomfortable body language he was giving. The girls didn’t seem to notice how uncomfortable Peter was and Tony knew Peter wasn’t going to say anything to them about it. 

He kept moving a little, looking jittery and anxious. Tony couldn’t bear to see him look so nervous, so removed himself from the little fan base that gathered and steered Peter out of the door with a hand on the small of his back. 

Once they exited, Peter looked a lot happier, one hand holding his cone, the other holding a cup. Tony couldn’t help but to smile at him, he looked happy and like the kid, he was supposed to be.

They walked in silence, Peter happily devouring his ice cream cone. By the time they got into the car, Peter was working on his Orange Freeze, slurping it up quickly. 

“You’re gonna give yourself a brain freeze,” Tony joked, he finished the last of his cone before starting the car.

“I don’t think I can get that,” Peter said as they sat in the car. “I mean, I haven’t gotten sick since the bite.”

“Really?” Tony asked, he started the car and pulled out of their spot. “We haven’t really looked into that, have we? Might be worth talking to someone about it, it’d be nice to have a full understanding of how the spider bite changed you.”

“Can we just talk about the adoption thing?” Peter suddenly asked Tony was a little taken back at his frankness. The kid’s demeanor had changed again too, he looked less relaxed than before. “I mean, that’s why you wanted to go out today, isn’t it?”

“That’s not why I’m out with you,” he answered as they started to drive away, “I wanted to have a nice night with you. We haven’t spent much time together recently.”

“Not on purpose,” Peter mumbled. “I’ve just been busy.”

“I know,” Tony said, he sighed. “Listen, Pete. I’m not doing this to force you into an answer or to even talk about the adoption thing. I just wanted to do something nice and something you wanted to do…” Tony trailed because Peter had stopped paying any sort of attention to Tony.

He was sitting up very straight in his seat, body completely rigid straight in his seat and Tony got a feeling of deja vu. “Another flat?” He joked, but Peter didn’t smile. 

And then, Tony heard the familiar police siren. “Oh really?” He quipped, looking in this review mirror to see a police car behind him, lights flashing. “I wasn’t speeding!”

He spared a glance over at Peter, who still looked concerned. “It’s alright kiddo, I promise you you're not going to jail.”

“It’s…,” Peter said as Tony pulled the car over to the highway’s shoulder. “It’s just… this isn’t right.”

“Too bad your tingle can’t get me out of a speeding ticket,” Tony tried to joke again. He was hoping when the policeman arrived at the door, Peter would relax a bit more. Having the kid looking so worried and tense wasn’t going to do them any favors. “Relax, it’s okay.”

Peter nodded slowly, he was looking at the police car behind him, as the officer strolled over to the car. Peter’s gaze wasn’t leaving the man as he walked up to Tony’s window. 

He lowered the window, as he arrived. “Hello, officer.”

The officer had to lean down a little to look into the car. His eyes glazed over Tony and then onto the obviously anxious Peter. He looked back to Tony, seemingly recognizing him immediately. “Mr. Stark, do you know why I pulled you over?”

“You wanted an autograph?” Tony did his best smile but apparently, it wasn’t working on either Peter or the officer.

“I need you to exit the car, Mr. Stark.”

Peter’s hand went out immediately, grabbing onto Tony’s arm. “Don’t.”

The office didn’t seem to like Peter's intrusion, he looked over at Peter. “Is that going to be a problem?”

“No,” Tony said to the officer and then turned, he locked eyes with Peter. “It’s okay, I’m just getting out of the car, stay here.”

Peter still didn’t let go of his arm and the officer was now sounding pretty annoyed. “Mr. Stark, I need you to step out of the car right now.”

“Peter,” Tony said and then pulled his arm out of Peter’s grip. Peter looked hurt immediately, his entire face fell and he slumped back into the seat. Tony didn’t know what to say, instead, he looked as the officer stepped aside to let Tony open the door. 

He stepped out, letting the door shut behind him. The officer stood to the side, looking over Tony. “So uh,” Tony started, “what’s going on? I’m pretty sure the car is correctly registered, I mean I didn’t do it personally, I have people but they are usually pretty reliable.”

“I need you to come with me,” the officer said and he started to walk, he put his hand on Tony’s arm, guiding him towards the cop car. 

“Okay so, this is getting a little weird for sure now. I think I’d like you to tell me what’s going on.”

He stood his ground, hoping he was wrong, hoping that Peter was wrong too. The office stood next to Tony and brought his hand down from his arm. Tony could see another person sitting in the passenger’s seat of the car. He hadn’t noticed him before but seeing him now, made him suddenly uncomfortable. His hand twitched, he was a simple gesture away from hitting his bracelet with his nanite suit. He could have the gauntlet on his arm in seconds and over his entire body in a minute. 

But then the decision was made for him, in one very quick movement the officer moved and Tony felt a prick in his neck. “Shit,” he said or tried to, his mouth was suddenly full of cotton. The world around him went on full spin and he felt himself tipping forward, the sound of Peter screaming his name echoing in his head.

And then, nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oy. So, I finished the story before I started posting it, but I usually do one last edit before I post each chapter, usually to add a line or two or take something out I wasn’t very fond of to begin with. Last night, as I reviewed the chapter, I realized my original thought processes didn’t work with the story. And thus, half the chapter was completely rewritten to something I hope works better. I always have a hard time with getting either of the boys kidnapped because heck, with Peter’s tingle and Tony’s Tonyness, they are two of the most prepared people ever and I find it difficult to put them in a situation where they are defenseless. I’m hoping this worked out for the better!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the lovely comments!! :) 
> 
> There is some uh, light torture in this chapter, nothing too graphic.

Peter was already out of the car when it happened. He watched helplessly as the fake officer pressed something into the side of Tony’s neck. He moved forward, watching as Tony tipped backward, the fake officer catching him, holding him under his arms. He started to drag Tony towards their car.

“I wouldn’t move.”

Peter looked away from Tony to see another guy standing by the passenger side of the car. Shit, he was so worried about Tony he didn’t even notice anyone else. The guy had his gun out, pointed at Peter. He started to walk towards him, gun still pointed ahead. “Get your hands up.”

Peter’s eyes darted back to Tony. He could try and get the guys, he could hopefully stop the other one from shooting Tony. He could also run, he was sure he’d be able to get away quickly enough but then that left Tony alone. He had hit the panic button on his watch as he got out of the car, but he knew he couldn’t keep them there long enough for the help to arrive. 

He held his hands up, the guy grabbed him, putting his hands behind his back and zip-tying them. “Good choice.” 

As he walked Peter over towards the car, another van pulled up behind the cop car. Peter watched as other cars drove by on the highway, no one stopping to see what was happening. The other guy had dragged Tony out of view and now the other guys were helping him carry Tony into the back of the van. 

Peter saw it coming, the guy’s hand moving towards his neck and Peter knew he could dodge it, knew he could break out of the zip ties quickly and get out but he didn’t. Tony was in the back of the van and he wasn’t going to leave Tony behind. 

So he let it happen, let the needle prick his neck, and whatever drug they injected him with pulling him into a dreamless sleep.

When Peter started to wake up, he could tell the van was still moving. He knew he wasn’t out for very long. He could tell his watch and shooters were no longer on his wrist, they must have pulled them off. He closed his eyes and listened to the sounds in the van, two people were talking but it was clear they weren’t in the back with him. Peter risked rolling over but was glad he did, he could see Tony still knocked out, lying beside him. 

There were a lot of thoughts running in his head. He could get out of zip ties, that would be easy but could he get them out of the van? With Tony unconscious, it would add a whole new element to trying to get out. 

He was angry with Tony still too. If only Tony would have actually listened to him, it wouldn’t have been a problem, but he didn’t, again. He thought about the whole thing as the van made its way to their destination. Peter always had a good internal time clock and he was sure the trip took about 3 hours before they arrived somewhere. 

When the van finally stopped, Peter kept his eyes closed tightly. He had to go as limp as possible when someone grabbed him and carried him in a fireman’s carry into a building. They tossed both Tony and him into a room with a steel door, slamming it behind them. Peter stayed still for a few more minutes until he noticed the uptake in Tony’s breathing. 

He opened his eyes to look over at Tony. He was laying on his side, blinking a few times before his eye opened again. He looked a little dazed, his eyes somewhat glossy.

“You hurt?” Tony asked they both pushed themselves up into sitting positions. He looked as if he was trying to get a better view of Peter as if he was checking for injuries.

“No,” Peter answered. “They just drugged me as they did you.”

“That’s good I guess,” Tony answered. They were silent, as Peter gave Tony time to collect himself a little more. He moved himself over, so he was sitting a little closer to where Tony was. He wanted to lean into Tony’s shoulder if only to ground him a little more but he didn’t want to look weak to their captures. He didn’t want them to hold him against Tony.

“I should have listened to you," Tony said after a beat of silence.

Peter’s anger had started to die down with the long car ride, but not enough. "Yeah, you should have."

Tony looked beat down and Peter had a ting of regret strike him but he continued anyway. "You tell me that I have to be better and not try and save you all the time but I ask you to trust me and it's like no, nevermind. I don't get it, Tony, I don't get what's so hard in trusting me."

"It's not that I don't trust you, Pete. I trust you a lot, it's just... not how I function, alright? I've never had a kid before who had some weird tingle that could tell us we're in trouble."

"Well you do now, so maybe you should listen to me for once," Peter said, maybe a little too harshly. "Sorry."

“No, you don't have to be sorry,” Tony said, “This is the second time your tingle was right about something happening and I ignored it again. If anyone should be sorry, it's me.”

Peter didn't know what to say, he wasn't used to an actual apology from Tony. 

“I was going to try and escape after they got you but uh, they pulled out a gun. I didn’t want to risk them shooting you, or actually, me and then leaving with you," he said, going for a subject change instead of pressing on with arguing. This wasn't the time and place for it anyway, they had more important things to worry about.

“Smart move. I’d rather you with me here, then bleeding out on the side of a highway.”

“I think they took our stuff, uh, my things are missing and so are yours.”

Peter leaned in close to Tony, trying not to talk too loudly. He knew there was a chance their captors were listening in on them. “I hit the panic button before they took us. I don’t know how helpful that will be.”

Tony grinned at him. “Atta boy.”

Their chat was interrupted suddenly with the door swinging open. Two guys came in, both holding guns. He could feel Tony tense up beside him and Peter did everything he could not to break out of the zip ties and take the guys down. He had to remember patience in times like this, it was better to wait. Isn’t that what Tony kept trying to tell him?

“Stark,” one of the men said, Peter assumed he was the leader of the group. He was different then the other guys he saw he kept that in mind, so far there were only 5 of them. “You’re a very difficult man to get a hold of.”

“Dunno,” Tony answered, his voice dripping with arrogance, “you could have booked an appointment like a normal person. I think I have availability in about 5 years or so.”

The guy gave a curt fake laugh. “You’re the same asshole you always been, haven’t you?”

“I’m sorry,” Tony said, without sounding sorry at all, “am I supposed to know who you are? Sounds like you know me and I really don’t remember a lot of my life. If you want me to know what you want, you’ll have to give me your whole villain origin story.”

Peter knew he was stalling for time and it seemed like the guy knew it as well. “Not worth it, if you can’t bother to remember the people whose lives you’ve ruined, then that’s on you.”

He gestured his head towards the two of them and the guy came over and grabbed Peter’s arm. He lifted him from the ground, he went without trying to stop him. “Hey,” Tony yelled, “leave him alone. If you want me, you got me.”

The guy holding Peter’s arm held him towards the other guy who backhanded Peter in the face. He didn’t make a sound, Tony, on the other hand, made an angry noise.

“I wasn’t really planning on getting leverage, I would rather have tortured you but this was just lucky,” the guy started, eyeing Peter after he didn’t react very much. “I can use him as leverage and not have to worry about killing you.”

“You are making a very big mistake,” Tony said, he sounded very angry and Peter couldn’t help but to grin a little. “You hurt the kid and you’ll regret it for the rest of your very short life.”

Both guys laughed, a rough chuckle coming from the one that was holding Peter. The other guy backhanded him again, this time a lot harder. Peter held his tongue again, he could feel the blood in his mouth from a split lip. “Who knew Tony Stark cared about anyone besides himself? This will be an even better tool then I originally thought. We’ll be taking your little boy here and having some fun with him to start with. We’ll return him when we’re done.”

They started to take Peter away, Tony shouted at them. “Wait, aren’t you going to tell me what you want?”

The guy chuckled. “I’d rather do this first, just so we have the same level of understanding right off the bat. I want you to see how serious we are.”

All Peter could do as they pulled him out of the room was yell out. “I’ll be fine!” 

He let himself be dragged into a different room, only a few feet away. Once inside the room it was almost comical, it was set up in such a stereotypical torture room. There was a long table, where Peter knew they’d chain him too. It was the traditional type of torture device, his arms and legs spread out and the table tipped forward holding him up. There was a tray of instruments, some he recognized others he didn’t. He was just waiting for a guy wearing a lab coat to snap on gloves in front of him.

Peter had to bite his tongue not to make any jokes. He knew he had to be good here, he couldn’t risk pissing the guys off and having them take it out on Tony. He could take it, he could take all the pain and torture they did to him. And he would if it meant that Tony didn’t have to take any of it.

“I can’t wait to break you,” the guy said, the others started to strip him out of his clothing. He struggled for a moment, before stopping. Once they had him down to his boxers, they brought him to the table and chained him down. They injected him with something, it didn’t knock him out but he started to feel a little relaxed. He assumed they were trying to keep him relaxed and a little out of it. The drugs started to make him feel a little looser and without really wanting to he opened his mouth to talk.

“Sorry,” he said finally giving in to his laughter, “I mean, this is really, really stereotypical. Did you like, watch every action movie ever to prepare for this?”

“Now I really can’t wait to do this,” the guy said, standing over a tray of items that Peter couldn’t. 

Peter giggled again. “Dude, you’re like super extra. Take it down a level or two.”

The guy walked over holding a very small scalpel in his hand. “Let’s see if we can get you to scream.”

Peter laughed again, this one a lot louder than the other. The guy didn’t seem any less determined by this sudden laughter. Instead, he leaned in and started to make his first set of incisions along the outside of his arm.

It wasn’t deep by any means, it was more like a feathery light papercut, that stung just as much as one.

“Death by a thousand papercuts,” Peter continued his giggling. “That has an actual name,” Peter said as the guy continued this methodical incision. “I can’t remember but it’s Chinese maybe? Someone should Google it.”

Peter’s rambling was met with complete silence by the two other guys in the room. He was starting to miss the normal bad guys he dealt with. At least most of them talked back to him. “You guys are super boring.”

Peter knew none of this was meant to kill him, it was just a way to inflict pain. They already tipped their hand when they said they’d be returning him to Tony. All of this was for the show and it’s all Peter had to think about. 

A few minutes passed, the guy had moved from Peter’s arms to his torso and legs. It wasn’t exactly the most painful experience, but it wasn’t pleasant. The cuts stung a lot, some of them worse than others. He had dropped his commentary when the others wouldn’t play along, instead, he tried to keep perfectly still and quiet. The drugs in his system helped a little, it was making him feel a little loose and relaxed. Peter figured they were using it to keep him compliant and not fighting back.

He thought he was doing good until the knife came up to his face. It hadn’t scared him before, but seeing it so close to his face made him gasp a little. The guy smiled again as if he was happy Peter finally seemed panicked. He did whatever he could to swallow down any more sounds or worry.

But he couldn’t help it when the knife went towards his face, he flinched, turning his head to the side. The guy grabbed his chin, a wicked grin on his face before pressing the knife against his face.

Peter closed his eyes tightly, he could do this. 

====

Waiting was worse than anything Tony had ever experienced. He kept waiting to hear Peter screaming, but the sound never came. He wanted to yell out, to tell Peter it’s okay to scream but he knew the kid wouldn’t do it. He had to relax before they brought Peter back, he had to be strong for the kid, he had no idea what state Peter would be in.

After what felt like an eternity, the door opened again and Peter came stumbling back in. 

He looked cold, they returned him in just his boxers and he was shivering just a little. He took a few uneasy steps before falling to his knees. “Hey Tony,” he said, looking at him smiling. Tony struggled to get up and make his way over to Peter, he wanted nothing more than to touch the kid but he couldn’t with his hands still behind his back. 

“Are you okay?” He could see the blood when he stumbled into the room and up close, he could see even more. Tiny angry marks, some long, some short but they all looked superficial. Most of them weren’t even bleeding anymore. 

However, the worst one was on Peter’s face. A particularly angry looking cut that ran from right below his left eye to his jawline. It looked deeper than the rest, it was still bleeding too. Tony let out the breath he didn’t realize he had been holding, it didn’t look like it had done any damage to Peter’s eye thankfully.

“Mmm, yeah, I guess,” Peter replied, there was something odd about his voice and Tony wondered if they had drugged him. “I’m alright.” Peter banked left, landing on his side. Tony didn’t know if he fell or it was planned but he didn’t even try to catch himself. 

“Break me out,” Tony said, “I don’t care if they know.” He turned his body so Peter had access to his hands. It took Peter a second, he reached out and grabbed both of Tony’s wrists before pulling them apart. The zip tie snapped and Tony was quickly helping Peter into a sitting position on the floor. “Let’s get a look at you.”

He looked over what he could see and thankfully nothing looked like it was life-threatening. The kid listed slightly to the left, it was clear they’d given him some kind of drug

“You alright, kid? Did they slip you something?”

Peter’s eyes were closed but he wasn’t sleeping. He let out a little giggle. “Drugs.”

“Okay, yeah, got that one,” Tony said with a smile, he was sure it wasn’t to relieve any pain, so he assumed it was to keep Peter compliant. 

“I’m alright, just… a little heavy right now,” Peter said softly, he yawned. 

Tony brought them up so he could lean against the wall. He maneuvered Peter so the kid’s head was in his lap. He took off his jacket and draped it over the top half of Peter’s body. The kid willingly relaxed a little, his was still shivering slightly. 

“Why don’t you close your eyes and get some sleep alright?”

Whether Peter had listened to him or just fell asleep anyways, after a second he closed his eyes and rolled his face into Tony’s stomach. He started to card his hand through Peter’s hair. The kid made a happy sound and then he was snoring already. Tony laid his head against the wall and closed his eyes. 

When Tony opened his eyes again it was to the sound of Peter’s voice. “Hey.”

Tony rubbed at his aching neck, unhappy from the uncomfortable angle he slept at. Peter’s head was no longer in his lap, instead, Peter was sitting upright and looking much clearer. The cut on his face was already looking a lot better.

“You alright?” Tony asked. 

“I’m good,” he answered. “Sorry, I don’t know what they gave me but man, the hangover is horrible.” He closed his eyes and leaned his head back. “I think the guys are coming back, that’s why I woke you. I can hear them in the hallway.”

“Are they saying anything?” Tony asked. He’d scouted the room for cameras or sound equipment but didn’t see anything. Despite that, they still talked in hush tones to each other, just in case.

“Can’t make it out, my head’s pounding a little too much,” he said, eyes squeezed tight. 

“It’s alright,” he said softly, “I wish you didn’t have to be here.”

“I’d rather be here if it means they’ll leave you alone.”

“Peter,” Tony started but Peter cut him off.

“Tony,” he turned his head and opened his eyes. They were bloodshot and a little glassy looking still. “Please don’t start this with me, okay? I’m going to protect you for as long as I can.”

“Doesn’t mean I want you to get hurt,” Tony said, looking into his kid’s eyes. He hated this. Hated that his life meant putting Peter’s into danger. It was one thing when Peter was Spider-man, he was capable and didn’t need help. But as Peter Parker, the kid couldn’t do much without giving away his identity. He hated that he was now putting Peter Parker into as much danger as Spider-man. No wonder the kid didn’t want to be adopted. 

Peter opened his mouth but then clamped it shut and turned his head as the door swung open. The same guys as before came back into the room.

“So,” the leader stated, “I let you have some time with the child. I hope he was able to tell you about all the fun we had. Although, the drugs can make one a little loopy sometimes.”

“Get on with it,” Tony growled out, his hand went out almost instinctively, to Peter’s arm. The kid didn’t stir at all. 

“Alright, alright,” the leader said with a chuckle, “you are such an impatient man. I’ll get right down to business, I would like you to make me an Iron Man suit..”

Tony blinked at him a few times. “Really? I mean you just could have gone and tried to steal one of the ones I’ve already made. That would have been easier on all of us.”

“Not quite. I want a suit of my own, with my specifications.”

“Why are you treating me like a Build-A-Bear Factory?” Tony asked he could hear Peter’s snickering beside him. 

“I see we haven’t shown you how serious we are yet.”

The other guy came over and grabbed Peter again, pulling him back up. “Looks like round two will be happening much sooner than we expected.”

“Wait,” Tony called out, “I’ll make you a suit, geez. Do you even have everything I need for it? Do you even know what I need? I mean, it isn’t like abracadabra here’s a suit and I mean, you know they aren’t easy to just operate either? I don’t make user manuals.”

“Of course,” the man snarled at him. 

He turned his head towards the door and another guy came in holding papers. He tossed them at Tony. “Those are the plans that I’ve created. You are to review them and prepare yourself to start working on the suit. To make sure you stay encouraged and working very hard, we will be taking your child to our torture room every single day. The longer you take, the worse he’ll be. You even think of doing anything that could result in your escape, I will kill him. Without a single hesitation.”

Tony was processing everything he was told, his eyes flickered to Peter who looked defiant and not the least bit scared. “Do you understand?” The guy asked Tony, a flicker of amusement in his eyes.

“Yes,” Tony answered, eyes still on Peter. There wasn’t a single thing he wouldn’t do to make sure his kid was safe. And now, every day he didn't get this suit made, Peter was going to pay for it. 

The guy smiled widely, it was horrifying to see someone look so happy. The guy holding Peter started to walk away. 

“Wait, I said yes!” Tony yelled out as the guy started towards the door as well.

“I’m just providing you with the proper motivation, Stark.” 

The door slammed shut, leaving Tony with the plans and nothing else.

He unrolled them and quickly went to work.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mild ~language~ ahead in this one, as well as light, torture reference again.

Peter had to work on steading himself in order not to tip over when they pushed him into the room. When they gave him back to Tony, they also provided him with one of their only meals, a tray with apple, bread, and water bottles for two. Sometimes there as even cheese. It didn’t work very well and he went forward, the food slipping off the tray. His reflexes were still good, he was able to catch the apple and bread before they hit the ground. The water bottles, however, hit and rolled a little before coming to a stop. 

“Hiya,” he said, putting the tray down as he let himself collapse to his butt. The drugs weren’t affecting him as much as they first had. He was wondering if he was growing some kind of tolerance to them. For the most part, they just made him feel loopy for a few hours at best. “Dinner!”

“Pete,” Tony said softly, his tone full of worry. They’d been here for four days now, each day a new kind of torture. They started taking Tony to a lab now when they took Peter. He kept insisting he was almost done, but Peter knew it wasn’t true. There was no way he could build a suit that fast. 

“I’m alright,” he said in reply, handing over the bread and apple to Tony. Tony stared at him, unmoving. He was waiting to hear about today’s torture and Peter hated telling him. “Taser. Nothing too bad, just some zips and zaps.”

He wasn’t lying, the tasers hurt but after a while, it really faded away. He felt like the electricity was still humming in his skin but it seemed to dull any real kind of pain he should have felt. 

Tony didn’t take the food from him, instead, he stared at him and Peter sighed. 

They had given him pants and a shirt to wear now. He was still cold most of the time, but it was better than stumbling around in his underwear. Tony liked to inspect him after each day, to make sure he wasn’t hiding anything. He stood up and lifted his shirt, giving Tony a few of the burn marks that littered his skin. Tony made tsk tsk sounds, but didn’t say anything else. Once Tony seemed to be finished, he sat down and went for his food.

“Pete,” Tony started again, he was talking in a low voice. At this point, they knew they weren’t being bugged, but Tony was still paranoid. “I think we need to talk about your escaping.”

“No,” Peter said sternly. “I’m not leaving until I know I can get you out. End of story.”

They had this argument before, from the first day onward. Tony wanted him to escape and get help, but Peter was not going to let him stay behind and get hurt. He knew very well that Tony wouldn’t be able to keep up with him, especially without a suit. It wasn’t that Tony wasn’t a capable person outside of the suit, it was just that Peter didn’t want to risk anything. They really had no idea where they were and what was surrounding the area. Neither of them got any view of the outside world, they could be anywhere. Peter felt like it was way too risky to try to get both of them out.

“They aren’t going to kill me,” Tony hissed at him. “They need me alive. And I know you’ll come back and get me. I’ll be fine.”

“You don't know that,” he hissed right back. His head was pounding again, his whole body was just aching a little. 

Yesterday they beat him up a little, it wasn’t as grand as the other days but it was enough to leave him bruised up and sore. The lack of food was also starting to get to him, it made him feel weaker than usual. “I see the things they have in there, they haven’t used on me yet. I refuse to let that happen to you.”

He wasn’t going to budge, not even an inch. He’s more than willing to take everything they can give him until they are rescued. He knew they’ll be rescued, the team won't leave them behind. He looked Tony’s in the eye, he looked tired and upset. Peter felt bad he was doing this to him, but it was better than the alternative.

“Peter Parker.”

“Anthony Stark.”

“Peter Walter Parker .”

“That is not my middle name,” Peter said, trying very hard not to crack a smile.

“Doesn’t matter. Peter Abraham Parker.”

“Really? No.”

“Peter Clifford Parker.”

“You are just getting worse and worse at this, Anthony Edward Sark.”

“Peter Franklin Parker.”

“Why are you picking names from the 19th century? I was born in 2001, dude.”

“Peter Hashtag Parker.”

He finally couldn’t hold it in, he cracked a smile and then started to laugh. He knew Tony was trying to distract him. Or he didn’t know his middle name.

“Here you want to adopt me and you don’t even know my middle name,” he joked, but the look on Tony’s face didn’t look amused. He scowled and then moved back to sit against the wall. He didn’t mean to make him upset. They hadn’t talked about the adoption thing since they were taken. They hadn’t really talked about anything since they were taken. “Sorry.”

“Peter Benjamin Parker.”

“Ah,” Peter said, “you do know.”

“I didn’t,” Tony said, “but I figured it was 50/50 between that or Richard.”

They were silent, Tony eating the bread and Peter finally going after his apple. He felt even worse than he did before. He maneuvered himself, so he sat next to Tony. He nudged his arm until he lifted it and he fit himself against Tony’s side so his arm was around his shoulder.

“Listen, Tony,” he started, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He had time to think about what Tony asked him. He thought about it a lot when getting tortured. Thought about how much Tony meant to him, how much he’d done for him. But he also thought about how important his family was to him, the one he didn’t have with him anymore. 

“You don't need to explain yourself, kid.”

“I want to, so listen,” he paused waiting to see if Tony was actually going to listen when he was met with silence he continued. “You have to know how grateful I am for everything you’ve done for me. You, Pepper the whole team. You guys all took me in, even when I was being stubborn. I know I don’t say it but, I love you both. You guys are my family and it’s not that I don’t want you, you know...” 

Peter hadn’t really cried during the torture, he was able to hold it in, driven by not wanting to give the jerks the satisfaction. But now all he wanted to do was cry. All the emotions and pain were overwhelming him completely. He wiped away a tear and felt Tony’s arm tighten around his shoulder. 

“And it’s not that I don’t want you to be… to adopt me. It’s just, I don’t need you to do it. I don’t want to be anyone other than Peter Parker. I know it sounds stupid but I’m the last one left and I want to be a Parker forever.”

“It’s not stupid, kid,” Tony said leaning over and kissing the top of Peter’s head. “It’s not stupid at all. I’m sorry if I made you think I wanted to take away who you are. I just want to make sure you are safe and protected. I want you to know that I’m not temporary in this. If you want it to be, I want the Tower to be your forever home.”

“When you say it like that, I sound like a dog,” he said, wiping away a few more tears. He felt Tony chuckle and then another kiss to the top of his head. “I’m not saying no forever. How about just no for right now?”

“Of course, kiddo. The invitation is always there and if it never happens, then it never happens. You’ll always be my kid, it doesn’t matter what any piece of paper says. Just like you’ll always be a Parker too.”

There was a beat of silence and then Tony said, softly. “I love you too, kid.”

Peter didn’t say anything back. He didn’t know what to say back. He knew on some level that Tony loved him, he surely treated Peter like a son but it was different to actually hear him say it. He rarely heard Tony say those words, maybe jokingly but never with that tone in his voice.

“I’m not really good at this stuff, Pete,” Tony started. “I didn’t have the best examples growing up, it’s not an excuse but I don’t want you to think I don’t care.”

“I know you do, I get it. Sometimes you’re just… really extra, I guess. It’s hard to adjust to all of this and all the stuff with my senses…”

“That’s on me, kid. I was serious when I said I was sorry about it. I was wrong and I should have listened to you. I should listen to you a whole lot more. I promise when we get back, we’ll do some testing and get an idea as to how all of it works so we can be better prepared.”

Peter nodded his head. Who knew it would take getting kidnapped and forced into a room together for the two of them to talk about their feelings.

“I know you don’t want to escape, but you need to think about this,” Tony started again. “I’m going to try trusting you more, but I need you to trust me right now. They are going to notice your healing soon. We can’t let them realize who you are.”

He knew Tony was right, he knew they were getting a little suspicious with his healing. It was going slower than normal due to the lack of food but it was still working just enough. 

“I know you’re right,” he admitted finally, “I’m just scared of what will happen. I feel like if you die, that’s on me.”

He knew he was throwing Tony’s words back at him, but it was how he felt and he needed Tony, really needed Tony to know it. “It’ll never be on you. No matter what happens to me, no matter how I die, it’ll never be your fault.”

“We still don’t know what’s out there if I do, or how I’m going to get any help.”

“Leave that bit up to me,” Tony said, “those idiots have our watches still. I saw them this morning, I think they were messing around with the tech. They have something blocking the signals from inside the building but if you get out, you should be traceable again.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I can grab them tomorrow.”

Peter sighed and closed his eyes, leaning into Tony’s warmth. “Alright.”

====

Tony sat silently in his cell, waiting for Peter to be returned. If the kid was able to walk, they were planning on running the escape that night. He’d wanted to do the night before but Peter came in soaking to the bone, shivering so hard he could hear Peter’s teeth rattling. They didn’t have blankets or anything to keep warm and Tony stayed up most of the night scared for his kid. In the morning Peter seemed to be doing okay, albeit a little off. He insisted he’d be good to escape that night.

Tony was willing to do anything to get the kid out. He couldn’t bear to see him come into the cell again after another day of torture. He’d been able to palm the watch the day before and they didn’t seem any wiser for it. Tony had tried to press it hoping the signal would work, but it didn’t. He was going to try and see if he could boost it, but he didn’t want to risk any damage to it. 

The guys were idiots, most of them at least. He couldn’t help the deja vu feelings he was getting from his first experience in a kidnapping. Things were way too similar for his liking, being forced to work on a weapon. The guy who watched him in the lab was some kind of engineer because he looked over everything Tony did, watching him like a hawk for anything out of the ordinary.

He saved off several panic attacks the first few days they’d been there. He couldn’t break down in front of Peter, not when he was going through all the physical pain. He would take moments to himself, when he was in the lab or before Peter came back for the night, to collect his thoughts and push down the memories and fear. He kept focusing on the job at hand, do whatever you need to for Peter to survive. If that meant actually building some crazed person a suit, then that’s what it would take. 

It wasn’t lost on him that the last time he tried an escape like this, it didn’t end well for everyone involved. 

The plan was to get out at night (or at least what they assumed was night, since they hadn’t seen the outside in several days). The door was steel, enforced with a lock but nothing Peter couldn’t break out of. They also knew no one watched the door at night or was in the hallway very often. Peter kept listening one night for anyone, only a few times did he hear someone and he insisted they weren’t that close.

It was clear the guys didn’t know Peter was enhanced and were becoming maybe a little too lax in their security. Peter and Tony had been model prisoners, both of them taking whatever they got without too much trouble. 

From where they took both, Peter and Tony, they had a decent idea of the building’s layout. Peter remembered the size of it when they were brought in. He insisted it was a single-story building. 

They could tell there was a single long hallway, at the end of it was their small cell room. Peter’s torture room was a few feet over on the right. There was a bathroom across the way, with two other rooms that were always closed. Tony’s lab was down the hallway and around the corner in a very large room. It was less of a lab and more of a room with a table and what looked to be stolen equipment. A lot of it was outdated, some of it in rough shape. He never managed to get any kind of origin story for the group, they were all mostly silent with them. 

The goal was to get Peter outside and far enough away for the watch to get a signal out to help. It was the main goal, even if that meant Peter getting grabbed again, all he had to do was get the signal out and hide the watch. If he managed to get away completely Tony made him promise not to come back without help. No matter what Peter thought, he was to get somewhere safe and wait for help to arrive.

Tony knew it was the better choice to make Peter do this alone. He wasn’t going to leave Peter behind and the longer they stayed the worse things were going to get. He knew he’d be a liability for Peter, he knew the kid could get out much faster if he was alone. 

The door opened and Peter was shoved back in. He fell right away, landing on his knees. A guy came in behind them and tossed the food tray, not caring that the food fell to the ground. Tony went straight for Peter. He was breathing heavily, his eyes barely opened.

“Shit, kid.”

Tony put his hands on Peter’s shoulders, trying to take a look at his face. His eyes were red, but not from tears. Most of the blood vessels looked like they ruptured. His face was pale and sweaty, he was shaking ever so slightly.

“Mmkay,” Peter said, his voice sounded hoarse and when he looked up, Tony could see exactly why. His neck was covered in welts and red marks. “It’s fine,” he breathed but it seemed to be hurting him to even breath.

“This is far from okay.”

He reached over and grabbed the water that had landed on the floor. “Drink something.”

Peter took it from him and struggled to swallow down some water. He finished and moved to sit against the wall. He brought his knees up and put his head down on them. “Imma fine.”

“Don’t worry about tonight.”

“No,” he whispered very hoarsely. “Just, I have to. Tonight. Please.”

Tony came to sit next to him. “Yeah, okay. Rest for a few minutes, tho. We have time.”

He didn’t know if Peter was sleeping or was even trying to, all he could hear was Peter’s breathing. Uneven at first but eventually sounding a lot more normal. They were ramping things up now, Peter might not have said anything to him, but he had clearly been strangled tonight. The chance of Peter getting seriously hurt felt like it was growing. Peter was right, tonight was the night.

Time went by and then Peter moved slightly and he took a deep breath. “Alright. I don’t hear anyone out there anymore.” 

“Are you sure you’ll be okay?” Tony asked as Peter sat up. The kid looked exhausted and beat down, Tony was amazed he was able to move at all.

Peter nodded and stood up, wobbled for a second, and then steadied himself. Tony got up too and stood beside Peter. “Okay, kid. You know what to do. Just, be safe. If they grab you, let them. Try not to show them what you really can do, okay? Keep the heroics down to a bare minimum. Focus on getting somewhere you can hit the button on and then hide.”

Without a word, Peter turned and hugged him. Wrapped his arms around Tony’s middle and squeezed tightly. He put his arm around Peter and squeezed him right back, planting a kiss to the top of his head. “You’ll be okay, I trust you.”

“I love you,” Peter said softly.

“I love you too, kiddo. Time to go.”

When they pulled apart Tony reached over and ruffled his hair. The kid ducked out of it and gave Tony a pretty convincing smile. He went to the door and very efficiently opened it without much effort. He took one last take at Tony before stepping out and closing the door behind him.

Tony did his best to listen as he waited. They wanted to keep as much time between Peter escaping and them coming to get him in the morning. He listed as long as he could, for something, shouting, gunfire… anything. 

At some point, Tony fell asleep and was awoken with a slap to the face and someone yelling at him sometime later. 

“Where the fuck is the kid?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And yes, the bit with the tray of food is totally a reference to the first Spider-man movie. :>


	10. Chapter 10

Getting out of the place was easy, so easy in fact that it made Peter extremely nervous. 

While the guys who grabbed them seemed like professionals, they clearly hadn’t put too much effort into making sure they wouldn’t get out of the building they were in.

Peter was able to get down the hallways and out the door without anyone seeing him or any alarm going off. He made it out of a locked side door by pushing it open and then that was it. Just like that, Peter was outside and no one seemed to notice. 

He had to fight the urge to run back in and take down all of the guys. But Tony had been right, it wasn’t worth the potential identity reveal. They had to be careful now that Toomes knew who he was.

He stood outside, the world still dark, and simply laughed at the stupidity of it all. He held the watch in his hand and hit the panic button. The signal wasn’t going out, so he started to walk farther away from the building. 

They were in the woods somewhere, Peter went towards where it looked like a road was. Tony had told him to stay off the main roads in case they guys came looking for him, but the main road might be the only way to get to someone who could help. 

The area reminded Peter of where the Compound was, but he didn’t think he’d be too lucky in that regard. He knew they had to only be a handful hours out from the city, they couldn’t have traveled any farther. 

Peter picked a direction and started jogging, after a few minutes the watch made a sound and he knew his signal was out in the world. He paused, his hands on his knees, and let out another laugh. 

Wow, that was easy. He stood for a moment, trying to decide what he should do. The longer he stood still the more he realized how tired he felt.

His body hurt, it was getting harder and harder to keep himself moving. The asphyxiation he experienced the day before was the worst out of everything so far. The pain in his neck was nothing compared to the pain in his lungs. The worst of all was the sheer terror of not being able to breathe. 

It just kept bringing back memories of being under a warehouse. Each flashback just added to the endless physical torture he had endured. If he didn’t escape tonight, he didn’t think he would be able to at all.

He wished he had his web-shooters, he could easily get through the area quicker, gliding along with the trees. He moved off the main road to the side of it and started walking.

So far he’d seen nothing to indicate a location or if anyone was around anywhere else. The street he was walking down was much more of a dirt road, he didn’t expect to see any cars coming. 

He finally stopped to take a break. He walked a few feet into the densely wooded area and leaned against a tree to sit down. He closed his eyes, wondering if he could stop and stay here until rescue came. If they were only hours away, the quinjet could get the team to them in absolutely no time.

The sound of a car coming from the direction he came from made him jump to his feet. They were coming for him, he knew it. He moved, so he wouldn’t be in anyone’s view from the road. He waited, trying to even out his breathing as the car drove very slowly down the road. He heard it stop a few yards away and boots hit the ground.

“The brat couldn’t have gotten very far,” someone said, the sound of footsteps down the gravel-filled Peter’s ears.

“How the hell did that kid get out of the door? You think Isaac didn’t lock it?”

They were whispering but Peter could hear them. His head was pounding, he’d had a headache for a week straight now and it was only getting worse the more he moved. He figured the safest thing to do was climb one of the bigger trees, he could easily hide up there and the guys wouldn’t think to look.

He moved as quietly as he could to a slightly larger tree, he grabbed one and started to climb. He reached a branch several feet from the ground and tested the waters. He reached over and put his hand on it, pulled a little and the branch bounced but didn’t break.

He moved, putting his weight onto the branch, but staying close to the trunk. He spared a glance at his view, he couldn't see where the two guys went anymore. Climbing up the tree shouldn’t have been as taxing as it was, but he was feeling a lot more tired then he had been on the ground. It took him a minute to realize he didn’t eat after getting back in the cell in the evening. He didn’t have a thing to eat in almost 24 hours now.

It was dark outside still, which helped secure his hiding spot better. Peter always felt like he had a good sense of time, especially when he was living in the greenhouse. It had to be close to 1 am, maybe 2? The longer he sat, leaning up against the tree, the less he was able to keep his eyes closed.

He couldn’t hear the guys anymore, did they leave? Should he get down? Should he go back? Should he wait for help?

Before he knew it, his eyes closed. 

====

They dragged Tony into the torture room when he didn’t give them an answer. He knew he had to buy Peter as much as he could. He couldn’t tell how long it had been since Peter escaped, he hoped it was long enough. They put him up on a table, chained his arms and legs down so he couldn’t move.

Peter had gone through this every day for a week now, he could handle a few hours. As soon as he was chained the leader of the group came storming in. He had never looked so angry, it made Tony grin.  
He was not happy.

“Where is the kid, Stark?”

Tony didn’t answer.

The guy took out a gun, pointed in at Tony’s leg. “One more chance.”

“I thought you wanted me to make you the suit. Can’t do it if I bleed out.”

He shot the gun anyway.

“Who said we’d let you bleed out, Stark?”

====

Peter could hear a lot of things. Heavy footsteps on the forest floor, people yelling things, the sounds of animal scattering about. His mind was too overwhelmed to focus on any particular sound. They all just blended into one loud painful throb. 

He pulled himself away from the tree trunk he’d been clinging to. A million questions coming into his tired, tired mind. When did he fall asleep? Did he fall asleep? Did he close his eyes? How long had he been sitting on the branch?

He readjusted a little, tried to find a better way to sit but he wasn’t thinking right. He meant to move back just a little and instead, he tipped backward a little too far. He immediately went to shoot out a web, but the realization he didn't have his web-shooters dawned on him far too late to try and grab onto something.

Instead, he fell backward.

He landed on his back, the impact knocking the breath out of him. It wasn’t far, maybe 10 feet at the most. He’d done worse. He tried to move, he knew he had to now. He could hear people coming. The sound his impact made on the floor was loud enough, they knew where he was. 

Suddenly there were hands everywhere, someone started to grab his shoulders. He tried to roll away but someone was on his legs a second later. He couldn’t keep his eyes open anymore, there was too much around him. He tried to kick and punch, but it was useless, his entire body felt like it was full of lead.

The only thing he could do was open his mouth and try to yell. “Tony,” he said, voice hurting in his throat still. “Tony.”

====

Tony had been shot before, it wasn’t anything new. It hurt like hell, but the shot missed any major damaging areas. The guy was smart. He wanted to keep Tony alive.

The thought scared him more than anything else.

“Did you think we’d just let the child escape, Stark? Why even risk it? Do you not care at all about him? He’s weak. He didn’t get very far out there.”

Tony didn’t answer, he had to bite down hard on the inside of his cheek to keep from making any sounds. 

“I thought you weren’t the silent type, Stark. Why the sudden change? Are you scared? Do I scare you? What you should be worried about is what I’m going to do with the child when we bring him back in here. You’ll get a front-row seat for it and you can see what your little stunt cost you.”

The door opened again and another one of the guys came in. He looked over at his boss with a satisfying smile.

“Are we good?” the leader asked.

“Yes. We’re all ready now.”

“Excellent. Get him prepped and ready.”


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why yes, once again I spent a lot of time researching something that ended up being a one line thing, weee.

Peter was up and moving the second he was conscious again. His feet hit the ground and he was moving before he had a chance to even open his eyes. Something was attached to him, holding him back. He pulled, hard, dislodged himself from it. 

“Stop!” Someone yelled loudly but Peter was already on the move. When his eyes opened, he was pushing open a door.

“Peter, stop!” 

Someone grabbed him from behind, wrapping their arms around his middle. He surged forward but whoever had him, simply lifted him off the ground to keep him from moving. His legs dangled inches above the ground, he kicked out, trying to find purchase.

“TONY!” He yelled, breathing heavily, he felt like he was in quicksand. He was sinking, down, down, down. Slowly he lost the strength to keep kicking, instead, he let himself sag down. The person holding him grunted and let Peter’s feet touch the ground. 

“Peter, it’s okay, breath. We’ve got you.”

“Tony,” he whined, the person holding him lifted him again and suddenly he was back on a bed. He had opened his eyes but things weren’t into focus yet. He felt a pair of hands on his shoulders. 

“Peter, you’re safe. You’re back at the Compound. Open your eyes and look.”

It took a second for his brain to come fully back online and when it did he saw the face of Steve Rogers across from him. He blinked a few times. 

“Peter, you’re okay. We’ve got you,” Steve said, his hands on Peter’s shoulders still. “You have to breathe.”

Peter did, in and out, in and out. His brain registered the other people Bucky, Sam and Nat hovered a few feet behind Steve. They all looked ready to sweep in and grab Peter if he ran again.

“Are you okay? I know you hate coming out of pain meds. It should almost be out of your system now, so just try to relax.”

“Tony?” He breathed. No one had said anything yet. “Where’s Tony?”

“We were hoping you can help us with that, Pete,” Sam said, walking closer. 

“You didn’t find him?” Peter said as loud as his voice could go, “There’s a building!!” He jumped off the bed, dislodging Steve’s hold on him. Steve stepped back, not reaching for Peter again.

“We looked, Pete,” Sam said again, placatingly. “They were gone by the time we got there. It took us almost 2 hours to get to your location. We had a hard time finding you, you hide yourself up in that tree pretty well. If you hadn’t fallen, it would have taken us much longer.”

Something in Peter’s chest seized and he felt like he couldn't breathe again. He started inhaling quickly and he felt Steve’s arm grab onto him again. “Breathe, Pete.”

“It’s my fault,” he said gasping for air, “I shouldn’t have left him. It’s my fault.”

Steve started to maneuver him back to the bed and Peter went. He sat back down, swinging his legs back onto the bed and sitting against the headboard. 

“No,” Sam said, Peter looked over at him, he was starting to feel embarrassed, the clearer his mind started to get. “You got out and got rescued. You did great. We will find him, I promise.”

“Let’s go now,” Peter said he leaned forward again but he didn’t get off the bed. “I’m ready.”

“No you’re not,” Nat said, walking into his view line. “You need to rest first. We’re working on finding Stark. We just need you to tell us what happened. That’s your only job.”

Peter started to feel a little overwhelmed with the number of people in the room suddenly. Sam must have realized it because he moved aside. “Alright everyone, let’s leave Steve and Pete to talk.”

He watched as everyone shuffled out of the room, Steve came and sat on the edge of Peter’s bed. “You pulled the IV out. We’ll have to get someone in here to put it back in.” He gestured to Peter’s arm.

“Oh,” he said looking at his own arm. He didn’t realize he had pulled it out, he had a small mark on the side of his wrist. With the adrenaline leaving him, he started to feel his head pounding a little, his body feeling tired.

Steve seemed to read his mind again. “Are you okay? Do you need pain med? I know you burn through them, but we’ve got some of the stronger stuff.”

“I’m alright,” he said softly before he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He tipped his head back, letting it hit against the headboard. 

“So, can you fill me in on what happened? We know you guys were taken out on the highway, we’ve recovered Tony’s car.”

Peter told Steve the story of their abduction, their imprisonment, the torture, and his escape. He left out a few of the more gruesome details of what he went through, instead, he gave him a basic summary. Steve listened and didn't stop Peter at all. 

“Well, I can tell you what happened on our end. We’d been looking for you two the entire time. We had very little to go on, a few witnesses but nothing else. We got your panic button and headed out to get you guys as soon as we could. You were out in Margaritaville, about 2 hours from the Compound. We had a hard time locating you right away but we got you. You were pretty delirious when we found you, you had a fever from an infection, dehydration and a few other issues. You’re good now, at least. Once we found you, we found the building shortly after. It was emptied out. Clint’s out there now trying to see if we can track their movements.”

“How long was I out for?”

“About two days, give or take.”

“Two days? Tony’s been out there alone for two days!?”

He couldn’t keep himself from panicking now even if he wanted to. Tony was out there somewhere, without Peter and it was his fault they didn’t get there in enough time. He never should have left, he should have stayed. He should have tried to take Tony with him.

“We need to move now,” he said and attempted to sit back up. Steve held his hand out and Peter stopped. 

“Pete, you need to sit tight. Let Dr. Black come over, he can check you out and then discharge you. You can join us at the meeting.”

“Meeting?” Peter raised his voice. “Meeting? No meetings! We need people looking! They are going to torture him! Who knows what they are doing to him. We can’t just sit here!” There was some part of Peter’s brain that tried to remind him that he was panicking and he needed to breathe, but the overwhelming fear of losing Tony was winning that battle.

“Peter,” Steve’s voice was firm and even, he didn’t raise it to Peter’s level. “We have people looking, but right now we need to gather as much evidence as possible.”

“What if he’s dead?” Peter shouted. Anger was building up in him, all the pain and exhaustion he’d been feeling was now turning into anger and resentment. “We need more people looking! I need to be out there looking. This is my fault and I can’t just sit here and let Tony die!”

“You aren’t sitting here and letting Tony die. You are waiting until we have concrete evidence before we make a move. If we rush this they could kill him. We’ve got a few leads already, Clint was able to track them but we’re waiting for more information.”

“WHY!?” Peter finally yelled, actually yelled at him. He could feel his face turning redder by the second. How dare Steve act like this. “You didn’t wait when you went after Bucky! You just did whatever you wanted, no matter how much it hurt everyone else. You didn’t care then, why care now? Why care when it’s only Tony who’s out there? Do you even CARE? Do you?”

Peter was breathing heavily, he could feel his heart pounding in his chest faster than it had in a long time. Steve looked the exact opposite of how he felt, he looked calm and steady. His face was even and he kept his gaze on Peter’s face the entire time. When he didn’t speak, Peter kept going. “You don’t understand anything at all. He is the ONLY person I have left. If he dies then I’m alone and it’ll be my fault again. I can’t let someone else die because of me! WHY DON’T YOU CARE? Why aren’t you getting angry?”

The more calm Steve looked, the more it angered Peter. He was so indifferent to how Peter felt, it was ripping him apart at the seams. When Steve didn’t speak again, Peter tried to get back off the bed. He was expecting Steve to stop him, but he didn’t. Instead, he moved, getting up and leaving the path to the door open. Peter got up and hovered in front of Steve. He felt like a wild animal trying to escape. 

“I’m sorry Peter,” he said softly, “I’m sorry this is happening to you, but I do care. I care about Tony a lot.”

“THEN DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!” Peter shouted at the top of his lungs. He didn’t get mad often, he never really yelled at people, but right now, he was mad. He was mad and upset and stupid perfect Steve Rogers didn’t seem to care. “WHY AREN’T YOU GETTING MAD?!”

Peter knew he was just egging the man on. He wanted a fight, he was looking for something out of him. He cared so much when it was Bucky, but he didn’t care at all that it was Tony.

“I do care, Peter. I’m very upset about what happened. I’m upset that you got hurt and had to leave Tony behind. I know that's very hard for you. I also know right now, you’re upset and scared. No matter what I say to you, you’re just going to get angry.”

Peter looked at him, body shaking with the effort to keep standing and not to punch Steve Rogers in the face. But he didn’t. Instead, he ran, took off out of the room and down the hallway. Sam and Bucky were standing outside the door, they most likely had heard the entire fight, or at least, Peter’s voice.

No-one stopped him, so he just kept going. 

====

When Tony came to, he was in an unfamiliar room. 

Wherever Tony was, he knew it wasn’t the same place as before. They transported him somewhere, it would be the only reason to drug him again. Tony was surprised they had a secondary location, he assumed it was very quickly found.

And since Peter wasn’t with him, there’s a good chance his escape was successful.

The new room he was in, was much smaller than the last. The door didn’t look enforced, but Tony didn’t want to try and push his luck. And he was in some pain still, the wound was dressed but the ache of the gunshot was still there. Whoever tended to him was a professional, he could tell they retrieved the bullet and stitched him back up.

Which only meant that they did intend to keep Tony alive to finish the job. 

After some time the leader came back in looking a little more flustered then Tony had ever seen him. 

“Stark,” he started but before he could finish, Tony jumped in.

“You still haven't told me your name. I mean, that’s just rude.”

The guy narrowed his eyes. “My name is irrelevant.”

“Not if you want it engraved on your suit. My name is right on the assplate.”

The guy sneered, it made him almost look a little comical, Tony grinned a little wider.

“As I was saying, Stark. Thanks to your child’s escape, we’ve had to make some changes to your situation. I will be bringing in your work and you are to continue making the suit. If you try again, anything at all, I will kill you. You are slowly becoming less and less worth it to me.”

Tony kept grinning. They weren’t as prepared as he thought they’d be. Wherever he was, it didn't have a lab. This could only mean he was never meant to be here in the first place. 

Tony could work with that. 

====

It was Bucky who found Peter as he sat on the roof of the Compound, it was an obvious location, he’d gone there before. He just needed to get out and breathe real air, to clear his head of his anger. 

He didn’t make a sound when he heard Bucky walk through the door, instead, he waited until Bucky was sitting next to him.

“I’m not going to apologize,” Peter said, looking straight ahead. “If that’s what you’re after.”

Bucky laughed. “I’ve yelled at Steve much louder and for much longer than that. I was a little impressed, I’ve never heard you angry before. I’m kinda a bit proud of you for it.”

They were silent and Peter tried so hard to relax, but he couldn’t. Yelling at Steve didn’t do anything, it didn’t make things better. He still felt like crap, he still blamed himself for what happened. Yelling didn’t bring him closer to finding Tony, didn’t do anything but make him feel tired. 

“I’m not saying this to you because I think you were wrong or anything. I’m telling you this because I want you to know that I understand more than you think I do and so does Steve. You know, all three of us were orphaned as kids. Both Steve and I lost our parents by the time we were teens. The only thing we had was each other at that point. Steve is far more than just my best friend, he’s my family.”

Bucky paused and Peter risked a glance over at him. Bucky was looking straight ahead out into the night. From growing up a fan of superheroes, Peter knew they didn’t have the best childhoods. It was one of those odd things to him, that a lot of the heroes he looked up to were orphaned just like he was. It was a comforting factor sometimes, when he was alone at night, even when Ben was alive. To know that you could still do good things, even after using your parents. 

“I’m sure you remember that Steve thought I died, right in front of him too. He blamed himself for years, blamed himself for not being able to save me,” Bucky continued. “When Steve saw me and knew I was alive, there wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do to get me back again. I can honestly say if our roles were reversed, I’d done the same exact thing. And I know this doesn’t excuse what we did to Tony, not at all. But Pete, you have to see that if anyone in the universe knows what you’re feeling right now, it’s Steve. He also knows that going in without thinking, that’s not going to help anyone. He’s trying to learn from his mistakes, we all are.”

Truth be told, Peter didn’t think about things that way. His focus was so much on the fact that Steve betrayed Tony then and he’s leaving him to die now, that he didn’t think of a reason. And here he is now, Tony kidnapped, his life on the line and Peter was ready to do exactly what Steve did for Bucky. Go out there at any cost to get him back. Consequences be damned.

“I’m sorry,” Peter finally said, “I just… Bucky, I can’t lose him. The thought of it, it’s too much to even think about. I don’t know what I’d even do if something happened. I’m just… I’m scared.”

Peter let out a sob, a loud cry that even took him by surprise. Bucky leaned closer, putting his metal arm around Peter’s shoulders. It was such a familiar gesture, he moved closer and leaned into Bucky’s side. 

“I know, Pete. I know,” Bucky said, his voice soft and caring. He’d never really seen this side of Bucky before. He didn’t know him as Winter Soldier, only knew him as Bucky Barnes. Peter thought now, he’s sitting with the kid from Brooklyn who was once lost, but now found. “This is a horrible situation for all of us, most of all you. But I promise you something, all of us, especially Steve, are going to do everything we can to bring Tony home.”

“I know,” Peter finally said, casting away tears from his eyes. “I know you will. I trust you guys, I really do.” Peter didn’t even have to think about saying it, as much as he didn’t like Steve, he knew deep down he trusted them. They came for them, they found him, they would find Tony. He knew they cared about Tony too, he could see it now especially. 

“I know you do, Pete.”

Peter nodded, taking in a deep breath. “Thanks, Bucky.”

“That’s what family’s for.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, minor long author note ahead: The fight between Steve and Peter was originally the main point of the original draft of the story. I was setting up a Peter vs Steve type plot with a side scoop of kidnapped!Tony for them to fight over. (Originally just Tony was kidnapped and I also had a hard time keeping the man kidnapped!) However, the more I wrote it the less they fought and the quicker the plot resolved itself. I didn't want to throw in random bits just so they'd keep fighting, so instead the story shifted. I'm just glad I got to keep it in because I like the fight and also because I had already written Bucky's talk with Peter and I realllllly wanted that to stay in! Because I am forever both canon comic wise and MCU wise Team Bucky Barnes for Life. Anywho, thank you for coming to my Ted Talk. ;)


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Almost done! Thanks again for everyone's lovely comments and the kudos! They brighten my day. :D

The meetings to discuss rescuing Tony weren’t really all that helpful, or interesting, but Peter went. He listened as everyone talked about leads. The kidnappers had left in a hurry, they were sloppy and they left things behind. Including fingerprints, which lead them to names, which could lead them to Tony. Clint was working on pulling up financial and personal information on the suspects. Things didn't move as quickly as they did in the movies, things like that took time and that was something that Peter felt like he didn’t have.

When Peter was little, when he was scared or feeling anxious he had a habit of hiding himself in corners. In their old apartment, there was a big cabinet in the living room, there was a space between the cabinet and the wall leaving just enough space for Peter to squeeze into. He liked being there, he liked having something surrounding him on both sides. 

After the spider bite, the habit started to change. Suddenly Peter could walk in walls and when anxiety got bad, he’d walk up and into a far corner. He could easily secure himself up there, away from everything. He’d done his share of scaring the others when they’d find him, sitting up in a dark corner of a room.

When another day went by without anything promising, Peter stuck himself in the corner of his room. He had been scrolling through his phone to distract himself when FRIDAY alerted him to Steve coming down the hall towards his room.

Steve walked in a second later. “Hey, Pete.”

It took him a second to look up in the corner and catch sight of him, Steve didn’t even look bothered.

“What’s up?” Peter asked. They had talked a little since Peter yelled at him, but never alone. Peter lowered himself, upside, so he was even with Steve’s face. 

“We think we know where Tony is.”

Peter dropped to the ground in a heartbeat and was already walking past Steve to the door. Steve reached out and grabbed Peter’s arm. He flinched and pulled away, only to whip around and face him. “What?”

“I know how badly you want to go with us to find Tony,” Steve started and then Peter jumped in.

“And I am going to help you.”

Steve held up his hand. “And, yes, yes you are going to help us. I want you to come with us, I’m not going to stop you.”

“Oh,” he raised his eyebrow. He really was expecting Steve to tell him to sit his one out. He was both confused and happy at the same time. “Okay.”

“I just wanted to make sure you were okay with me running point on this. I know you aren’t happy with me. I just don’t want us to go out there and for something to happen.”

“Oh,” Peter repeated. “Are you worried I won’t listen to you?”

“Yes and no,” Steve answered, “I don’t want you to go off and get hurt when you don’t need to. This involves a lot of trust and I need to know that you trust me. If not, then I’ll have someone else run lead.”

It was odd to hear Steve willingly step down from running lead if Peter wasn’t comfortable. 

“I trust you,” Peter said quickly. “I trust you and I’ll listen.”

Steve smiled at him and a lot of the unease Peter had been feeling with him seemed to unravel. “Alright, suit up Queens.”

====

The kidnapper's plan was slowly falling apart and that scared Tony just a little. If they didn’t feel like they could get what they wanted, they might actually kill him. No one came and took him into a lab, they barely gave him food. They barely interacted with him at all. Occasionally one of the guys would come in and check Tony’s wound, but that was all. They kept his hands tied behind his back. The position was not comfortable in any way, he was only let out to eat.

It worried Tony that something happened to Peter that delayed the rescue. His mind couldn’t help but play over and over again, the last time he saw the kid. The way he listed to the side, stumbled a little and looked rundown. He cursed himself for putting Peter into this position in the first place.

The longer Tony sat, the harder to become to pull himself out of the anxiety and dread. He kept thinking about the cave, Yensin, and all that followed. Anxiety would never stop following Tony, no matter what happened to him. He just couldn’t afford to lose himself in the stupid little room. He had to be ready when they came and got him, had to be prepared to get out safe and sound.

He had Peter to think about now, he had a kid waiting for him and there was no way he wasn’t getting back home.

====

A farmhouse was not what Peter was expecting when Quinjet arrived outside the building. It looked so plain, so unassuming. They weren’t even that far from where they were originally held, an hour away at most. It drove him a little crazy that it ended up taking almost a week to find Tony when he was so close. 

“Can we just, like, knock on the door?” Peter questioned, partly joking. No one replied, but he caught the smile on Bucky’s face. His nerves were buzzing, he felt too jittery to stand still for much longer. He had the sudden feeling that he didn’t want to be here, didn’t want to go on the mission to rescue Tony. There were so many things that could go wrong, so many ways he could mess up.

Nat’s shoulder bumped his, taking him by surprise just a little. “You’re okay.” Peter nodded, head shooting up as Steve walked past and towards the back of the Quinjet. 

“Okay. We know there are 5 heat signatures in the house. Two are in the basement, the rest are upstairs. We believe Stark is in the basement. This is a rescue mission, we get in, we get our man and we get out. Bucky and Nat will go towards the back of the house. Peter, you’re with me. We’re going to the front door.” He grinned at Peter before continuing. “Sam and Clint, you’ll be staying in the Quinjet for backup. They don’t seem to have any security and whatever scrambler they were using in the warehouse, doesn't seem to be here either. Ready?”

There was a series of yes and nods, Peter just swallowed roughly.

This was his first mission with the team, he just wished it wasn’t a rescue one. He’d go for a run of the mill villain of the week any day.

At Steve’s signal, they departed. Peter followed behind Steve, nerves buzzing still. They made their way up to the front door. Steve turned to him. “When we get in, try to get to the basement and find Tony. Your job is to get our damsel okay?”

Peter smiled. “Yup.”

They waited until Nat and Bucky were in position and able to get in through a back door. The second they were ready, Steve kicked down the door in an awe-inspiring move that impressed Peter, just a little. They busted in the house, Peter felt like he was starring in some kind of cop drama and not a superhero. There were three guys in the living room, all three of them jumped up, but none of them had weapons.

Peter saw the stairs to the basement immediately and all but flew over to them. Steve was easily taking out the guys, who didn’t seem to be all that into fighting with Captain America. It almost made Peter angry, he was tortured by these guys and they are just giving up so easily. He made his way down the stairs, stealth was not needed, there was enough commotion happening upstairs.

When he hit the bottom step, he saw them. The leader guy, standing with a gun pointed right at Tony’s head. 

“Tony!” Peter yelled, losing all sense of control and balance. This was it, this was what he was so, so scared of and it was happening again. Right in front of his eyes. Everything in the room, the house, the universe even, stood still. He could barely hear any sound, barely see anything other than Tony with a gun to his head. He looked at Tony, he didn’t look scared, he looked… almost happy. 

“Stop right there,” the guy said, “I won't hesitate to decorate this room with his brain matter.”

Peter stilled, at the bottom of the staircase. He didn’t say anything, his voice left along with everything else. Instead, he stood, staring straight at Tony.

“Spidey,” he heard Tony say or maybe he didn’t, he was having a hard time keeping himself from drifting away. “It’s fine.”

It was like with Ben again, too scared to move. Too lost in his anxiety and fear to do anything. 

The guy laughed, loudly. Peter knew he wouldn’t hesitate at this point, his entire plan was gone, just like that. Just like he knew the robber would kill Ben, but this was not going to happen that way. He refused.

So he moved, closed his eyes, and moved. He had the web out and connected with the guy’s gun before he even knew what was happening. Tony, for his part, twisted out of the guy's grip and swung his tied arms around, knocking the guy hard in the middle. Peter didn’t need anything else, he had the guy webbed to the ground a second later.

He dropped to his knees, breathing heavily. Tony was there in a heartbeat, kneeling in front of Peter, his arms still behind his back. “Hey there, kid.”

“Hey Tony,” he breathed deeply. “I found you.”

“Yeah,” Tony laughed, “you did.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this was super short but Wednesday final chapter is a bit long to make up for it. ;)


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now that the angsty stuff has been taken care of, now we have ~fluff~.

Funding the Avengers meant that Tony got his private medbay suite that was pretty much closer to someone's bedroom than a hospital room. It was only right, after all, he tended to spend way too much time in one. The nurses were joking about naming a whole wing of the medbay the “Starker-Parker”. Tony was just relieved that it was him who’d been laid up in a hospital bed this time and not his kid.

“Hey,” he called out to Peter when he awoke from a little midday nap. He’d been in the hospital for a week so far, he was feeling a lot better. After shooting him the kidnappers were nice enough to provide some medical care, he could have come back in much worse shape. 

Peter looked up and away from the Switch he’d been playing. Tony was surprised the kid accepted the Switch as a surprise gift a few months prior. He’d been so touchy with any kind of expensive item, whether he needed it or not. Peter did take it rather begrudgingly, it put a smile on Tony’s face whenever Peter used it. 

“How are you feeling?” Peter asked, putting the Switch down and moving the chair closer to Tony’s bedside.

“Pretty good. Not that I don’t appreciate it, but why are you hanging around and watching me be unconscious?”

“When you say it like that, it sounds super creepy.”

“Well, I mean, it kinda is, kid. Even Pepper isn’t holding a vigil over my bedside. You know I’m getting cut loose tomorrow, there’s no reason to be worried.”

“I know,” Peter said softly, he looked down at his hands and Tony could tell right away the kid wanted to talk about something.

“Alright, lay it out, Petey. I can take it,” he tried to joke, but Peter just kept looking down at his hands. In Peter Speak this meant something was really bothering him, Tony straightened up in the hospital bed. “Seriously, Peter, what’s up?”

Peter cleared this throat and lifted his eyes to catch Tony’s for a moment before looking back down. “Remember the day I wanted to go back to the Tower and Wanda drove me?”

Tony had to think about it for a minute, nothing memorably happened that day, but he vaguely remembered the conversation. “Yeah, a little.”

“Well, uh. I didn’t tell you the truth, as to why I wanted to go back. Um,” he paused, biting his bottom lip just a little. 

“Whatever it was, Pete. It’s fine, no big deal.”

“It was the anniversary of my parent’s death and I wanted to visit them,” he said, very rushed, eyes still downcast.

Tony’s stomach dropped, he didn’t even think about stuff like that. He’d never even thought about the kid wanting to even visit his parent’s graves. Tony hadn’t wanted to visit his parents for such a long time, it was just too much for him. Jarvis would take him occasionally, but as the years went by Tony built up a wall around it. Grant it, the whole Winter Soldier thing pushed down that wall rather quickly, but still. He should have realized that Peter was just a kid, an orphan and he’d want to do things like visiting his parents and uncle. 

“I’m so sorry, Pete. You should have told me, I would have gladly taken you back there.”

“I know,” he offered, “I’m not mad at you. It was, uh, nice having Wanda there. She talked to me about remembering my family and not replacing them. I’ve been thinking about it now, since uh, you know.”

The final piece of the puzzle slid into Tony’s mind, he understood now, just how hard the adoption question was to Peter. The whole picture came into a view. Tony was an idiot for not seeing it sooner, for not realizing how Peter must have felt. 

“When Ben died, I feel like I lost myself. I just wanted to be Spider-man, you know? Because Spider-man can save people, he’s brave and good. Peter Parker just kept losing everyone and messing up all the time. Ned always yelled at me for thinking I was two different people, but uh, I’ve always felt that way. It’s just always been easier to be someone else when bad things happen and now I can be someone who stops them. I feel like I was just getting back to being myself and then you asked… to adopt me and now I feel like I don’t know who I am. I don’t know who I want to be.”

“Peter,” Tony said softly, not knowing what to say to him. Tony should have realized, of course, the kid was going to have these kinds of problems and feelings. He should have seen this coming, should have been better for him. He knew he wasn’t an expert on being a Dad, a mentor, or even a friend, but he had to try to be better for Peter.

Peter finally looked up at him, his eyes a little red and glossy. “It’s okay, Tony. I’m not telling you this to upset you. I just want you to know why I’m scared about this so much.”

“You are allowed to be scared, you’re allowed to feel those things. Dammit, kid. I wish you would have said something sooner. I’m a jerk about stuff like this, I was just so excited about it. I never stopped to think about anything else.”

Peter smiled just a little. “We’re both really bad at this stuff, aren’t we?”

“Well, we’re not going to win any communication awards anytime soon. But I’m trying, alright? I’ll try and you try. We have a long time to make this thing work.”

“Yeah, okay,” Peter said and then gave him an actual smile. 

“Come here,” Tony held out his arms and Peter came willingly, leaning over the bed railing for a hug. “No, no, come on in the bed with me.”

Peter pulled away and raised his eyebrows. “Uh, cuddling?”

“Yeah,” Tony gruffed out at him, Peter blushed a little. “Your old man likes to cuddle his spider kid every once in a while. Got a problem with that?”

Peter’s answer was to simply scramble into the bed, careful not to hurt Tony at all. The bed was a Queen, it could very easily fit the two of them. Careful of the wires still attached to him, Tony maneuvered Peter so he was laying with his head in the crook of Tony’s arm. 

====

Peter knew Sam had ulterior motives the second he asked Peter to watch a movie with him. He watched movies with his team normally but Sam kept shooting a look to him that was way more therapist than a friend. He even made Peter popcorn the way he liked it (covered in soy sauce) even though Sam absolutely hated it. He even suggested they watch Star Wars, which Peter turned down in favor of watching Game of Thrones.

The whole thing screamed Trying To Make Sure Peter Is Happy After Being Kidnapped And Tortured. 

He appreciated it, really but he didn’t need it. 

He was fine, Tony was already out of the medbay. They were both home and they were both safe. 

It was fine, really.

Peter was distracted but his spider-sense was still sharp, so he caught the popcorn piece that Sam threw at him. He couldn’t help but grin when Sam swore.

“Damn, I really thought I’d get you. You haven’t been paying attention to the show for the last 20 minutes.”

Peter grinned and ate the piece of popcorn, turning to deliver a wide smile to Sam. “You’re never going to win the game, dude. It’s impossible.”

Once the team had discovered what everyone called Peter’s “freaky spider powers” it started to become a game to see who can take Peter by surprise. The rules were simple, you could throw anything at Peter at any time. If Peter didn’t catch it, you got a point. At first, if Peter caught it, you’d lose a point but after a month everyone was so far in the negative they removed the rule. You got a half-point if Peter dropped the object after catching it.

Other rules came and went, they weren’t allowed to throw anything too sharp. This was due to the large amounts of knives that ended up being hurtled at Peter sometimes. Peter didn’t mind so much, but Tony nearly had an aneurysm when he saw a butcher knife life across the room while Peter was eating lunch. Peter caught it (by the handle, thank you very much) but it didn’t seem to make Tony feel any better.

FRIDAY was the official scorekeeper since no one else could be trusted not to cheat. 

And while Peter’s sense was good, sometimes people got the drop on him. If he was tired, hurt, or feeling rather emotional, he’d miss a few times. Right now Clint was in the lead after he threw a stapler at Peter’s head at 3 in the morning while he was studying for finals. 

“I more or less just don’t want Clint to win at anything,” Sam smirked, he left his eyes on Peter for just a second too long. 

Peter really did appreciate how much Sam and the team cared for him. It was also very overwhelming. He’d always been a bit of a loner growing up, he had Ben and Ned, but that was about it. Peter didn't mind it at all they were more than enough for him and he was happy. When he lost Ben, he always had Ned there too, even if he didn't see him very much. Peter found out that he could be his support system if needed to be. 

It was just hard going from having two people worry about you, to no less than 10 people worrying about you. Especially since it felt like they were all in cohorts with each other even more so since most of them lived with him. He knew everyone was worried, he hadn't had a moment to himself since Tony came back. 

It was also hard for those people not to see how you were feeling. It was clear that Peter was upset about what happened. It was written all over this face, no matter how much he tried to hide it. Ben used to tell him that Peter was an open book when it came to that sort of thing. 

People who tended to protect Peter also tended to be in the line of fire. He couldn’t help but think about Ben stepping in front of Peter to protect him and ending up with a bullet for his troubles. Peter spent a lot of time thinking about every other scenario that could have played out. It was a game he tried really hard to avoid, but lately, it was all he could think about.

And now he played that same game with Tony. It didn’t matter that he didn’t die, his nightmares presented him with plenty of times where he did. 

“Webs, I’m talking to you,” Sam’s voice caught Peter by surprise a little when he heard it. He turned his head away from the TV and looked over at him. Sam had apparently paused the TV at some point, as well as moved a little closer to Peter on the couch.

“What’s up?” Peter asked nonchalantly, but he knew he was in for it now. Sam had on his worried face.

“I’ve been talking to you for like 5 minutes now and you’ve been out of it. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah,” Peter lied and then stopped to sigh and lean back further into the couch. There was nothing wrong with talking to Sam, he had to remind himself. “No.”

“Figured, want to talk about it?”

“I feel like everything that happened to Tony was my fault,” Peter admitted, looking down at the half-eaten bowl of popcorn in front of him.

“Why do you say that?” 

“Because,” Peter started and took a deep breath. Sam knew a little about Ben's death, Peter had a bad night where he stopped a robbery that reminded him of that night. He ended up confiding with Sam when he got back home. “Because when people try to take care of me, they end up dying instead.”

“Woah,” Sam said, he moved an inch or so closer. “That’s a pretty big leap in logic there, Webs. Why don’t we try to talk this out alright?”

“What is there to talk out? Ben died because he tried to save me when he didn’t have to. I could have survived getting hit, I could have stopped the robber, I had my powers. How is this not on me? And now with Tony, the same thing. I had my powers in that room and I did nothing to help him. I waited too long to escape and he got hurt because of it. Everything is always because of me.”

“Do you know why I left the Air Force?” Sam asked him and Peter shook his head. “I lost my wingman, Riley. We were doing a normal mission, completely and utterly normal. It was almost painfully so. But then out of nowhere, Riley gets hit by an RPG and then, that’s it. He’s gone. There was nothing I could do about it, not a single damn thing.”

Peter recognized the look in Sam’s eyes, it was one he knew he’d had before. “Sorry,” Peter said softly.

Sam smiled at him and then continued. “Survivor's guilt, Peter. It’s a hard thing to deal with for anyone. I let my guilt pull me out of my job and my life. It took me years to come to terms with not being able to save him and realize it wasn’t my fault. It’s a sucky thing to have to say, but you can’t always save everyone. ”

He felt Sam shift on the couch and then his arm was around Peter’s shoulder. He leaned into the hug, as Sam rubbed his arm a little.

“I just want to do right,” Peter said softly, “I don’t want to be the reason why something bad happens. Sometimes I feel like I’m a curse to people around me.”

“Now I know that’s not true Webs. You are not a curse to anyone, ever. You do nothing but make people happy around these parts. I used to think Stark was a grade-A asshole and I would still think that if I didn’t see the way he was around you. That goes for everyone else too, hell, look you got me watching Game of Thrones and I actually like it. I don’t usually go for geeky shit, but your excitement is contagious.”

Peter blushed, nervously fidgeting with his hands. He wasn’t very good with compliments, especially when he didn’t feel like they were true.

“The only thing you can ever do is your best,” Sam continued, “None of us, including Stark, expect you to be perfect and to save every single person out there. That’s way too much weight on your shoulders. You aren’t to blame when things go bad, even if you were standing right there.”

Peter nodded and Sam moved his arm away but stayed next to him. “Thanks, Sam.”

“Anytime, Webs. I would love it if you talked to someone about what’s going on in that noggin’ of yours. It doesn’t have to be me, I could find you a good therapist who works with others like us. I feel like you haven’t had the proper amount of time to grieve for your uncle and I want you to do it in a healthy and safe way. A big part of grief is always going back to the what-ifs and focusing too much on trying to change an outcome you never can. It's something you should work on with someone, it'll help you in the long run."

Peter thought about therapy often, he went after his parents died but it was expensive for him to continue on with. Tony had offered the same to him when he moved in, but he declined. 

“I could talk to you,” Peter started. “Maybe not right now, but uh, when school starts again?”

“Sure thing,” Sam answered. He moved his arm from Peter’s shoulder but didn’t move away. Peter leaned against him still, he didn’t seem to mind. “Now can we get back to this show? Shit’s about to get real with some dragons and I for one, can not wait to watch some people burn.”

====

“You sure you’re good, kid? You’re lookin’ a little green there.”

Peter swallowed hard and rolled his shoulders back’. “Yeah, I’m good.”

Tony grinned at him and handed Peter the modified mask he’d made him.

After two days of being poked and prodded to see what his metabolism and body was like on the inside, it was finally time to show them just what he could do with this spider-sense.

Peter would be wearing a modified mask that removed all of his senses, he couldn't see, hear or smell anything. He would have to rely on just his spider-sense to dodge everything thrown at him by the rest of the team. He wasn’t even privy as to what type of projectiles they’d be using. He just knew he had to go in and get to the other side of the room, taking as little hits as possible. It was pretty much a game of laser tag, Peter was pretty sure they might actually use lasers, going the team.

“FRIDAY,” Peter said before putting the mask on, “remember, no matter who hits me with what, no one gets any additional points.”

Tony laughed, as FRIDAY agreed with Peter on that point. “Remember,” he said to Peter, “just try your best. If you’re having a problem or it becomes too much, hit the panic button on your watch. Everyone will stop and the mask will stop blocking everything.”

Peter nodded. “Yeah, I got it. I remember.”

He wasn’t nervous, as much as just ready to get this going. He wanted to show the team how much he could do with just his spider-sense. He was ready to impress them and show off his skills. He gave Tony one last nod and put the mask on, it wasn’t on yet, so he could still see and hear. Tony opened the door and he walked in and waited. 

A countdown began in his ears, starting at 3 and when it hit one, the world blacked out.

Everything was absolutely blank, he couldn't see or hear anything. It was a bit overwhelming at first, going from everything up to eleven, to almost nothing at all. He could still feel things, thankfully, that sense seemed to pick up a little once he didn’t have the others. The texture of his suit and mask felt so much more. 

And then, just like he knew it would, his spider-sense kicked in. He grinned under the mask and got to work.

He sensed the first arrow immediately, he knew exactly where it was coming from and effortlessly dodged that one and the one coming from the opposite direction. There were obstacles in front of him, something in the way, he vaulted over it, barely missing an arrow that flew over his left shoulder.

The feeling was a little overwhelming at first, the tingle of anxiety constantly shooting down his neck, but the more he moved, the more he felt in sync with what was happening. The sense didn’t dull by any means, instead, it simply hummed beneath his skin, showing him where each arrow was in the air, where there were things on the ground for him to avoid. 

When he could see and hear, things were different, the sense had a much sharper feel to it, it stabbed at him, forcing him to move with it.

But now he was able to trust himself more, trust the instincts he was feeling completely, now that there was no additional input to compete with. 

All at once, another form invaded his sense and he felt the presence of a person, coming upon him from behind. It was a different feeling than the arrows, he could feel a person, feel their movement, the vibration of their footsteps, the feel of a heartbeat without even needing to hear it. He dodged a punch, moved with grace to avoid tripping over something, and kicked out, sending the person backward.

Someone else came up and instead of just dodging this time he punched someone, connected squarely with someone’s jaw. He didn’t really like hitting people, but everyone had encouraged him to try and fight back. They were mostly curious to see if Peter’s sense could help him both in defense and offense.

Peter kept grinning under the mask as he made his way through the room.

====

Almost three hours later, Peter sat in the living room amongst the rest of the team. He sat on the couch, stretched out the long way, his legs up on Sam’s lap, and his back against Tony’s side. His plate was overflowing with spicy chicken wings, his fingers and face were sticky. They were waiting for Bucky to come back into the room before they started the West Wing episode they had left off on.

Like most things that happened amongst the team, they had a hard time finding something they could all watch and enjoy together. It came down to a March Madness type challenge, where everyone came up with their ideas. It was then voted on by the group, narrowing it down until they had a winner in West Wing. Peter hadn’t seen it before, he had voted for The Office (which had come in second place sadly) but he’d been enjoying it. 

Peter caught the container of ranch dressing Clint had lobbed at his head from across the living room.

“Damn,” Clint said, “I thought for sure you’d be tired enough to miss it. You were insane today, you dodged every single damn thing we threw at you.”

“Yup,” Peter said, licking the spicy sauce from his fingers. A second later Tony dropped a napkin onto his head.

“You gave Cap a black eye,” Clint continued. Peter’s eyes cast over to Steve, his black eye was already looking a little bit better.

Peter shrugged. “Sorry again.”

Steve’s response was a smile and for once, Peter smiled back because he wanted to, not because he felt like he had to. Maybe it was a little gratifying having punched Steve in the face but he wasn’t going to mention anything about it.

“The gymnastics,” Clint continued, his voice still in a tone of complete aw. 

Peter knew his face was red, he ducked down a little, looking to his plate to avoid anyone’s gaze. “Uh, thanks.”

“Come on Clint,” Tony said. “You’re embarrassing my kid here and you know that’s my job.”

“Tony,” Peter whined with a smile. “I’d prefer it if no one is embarrassing me.”

“I don’t think that’s possible, Petey. You’re a walking meme sometimes,” Sam said and then made a face, “did I say that right?”

He did not, but Peter didn’t correct him, instead he kicked his feet into Sam’s thigh. Sam responded by trying to tickle his feet, Peter promptly pulled his legs away, bringing his knees up to his chest. It almost knocked his plate from his lap, if Tony hadn’t leaned over and removed it.

“Alright kids,” Bucky said, walking his way back into the room. He was carrying a plate of chocolate cookies with him. He stopped at the couch, Peter mid giggles, knees up to his chest, Sam still trying to reach for them and Tony, with a long-suffering look, holding a plate of chicken wings above his head. Peter figured they looked like one of those Renaissance paintings. He made a mental note to ask F.R.I.D.A.Y. for pictures from the security cameras. 

Peter looked up to see the cookies and abandoned his current task to reach his hands out. “Gimmie!” 

Bucky grinned and handed him the entire plate of cookies. “Hey,” Nat called from the loveseat. “Do the rest of us get cookies?”

“Nope,” Peter replied, digging into the cookies on the plate. There were many sighs and sounds of protest, but Peter kept the plate close to his stomach. Tony laughed from above him and handed back down the plate of chicken wings as well. He skillfully balanced both plates on top of his knees. 

Bucky took a seat next to Steve, handing him a few cookies he had taken off the plate. 

“Alright, quiet time guys. We’re getting to the best episode next and I want us to actually watch and enjoy it,” Sam called out to the group. He was the only one who’d seen the show before and therefore, the person in charge of dictating how much attention needed to be paid per episode. It rarely if ever worked, the group talked regardless, but it was fun to see Sam try to reign them all in.

Sam pressed play after he settled back in, Peter passed the cookie plate to him. As the episode started, the plate made its way through the group, everyone smiling happily when it arrived. Peter finished off the last of his wings and put the plate on the table. He leaned back down, Sam allowed his feet back onto his lap and Tony adjusted and shoved a pillow under Peter’s head. He sighed in content, comfortable stretched out on the couch, feeling relaxed. Tony’s hand made its way down to Peter’s hair and he started to card through it. 

Peter took his eyes away from the TV for a minute to look around the quiet room. Nat and Clint sat side by side, eating their wings. Nat’s fingers and face were oddly a lot cleaner than everyone else's. Clint was just as messy as Peter had been and he let out a little giggle as Clint wiped his hand on the expensive couch. 

Wanda and Vision were sitting in front of the table, with their backs leaning against it. Peter couldn’t see their faces, just the back of their heads. Wanda had her head leaning on Vision’s shoulder.

Bucky and Steve sat on the other love seat, side by side, sharing a plate of boneless wings (traitors, Peter thought, not real wings). They were whispering to each other out and of the corner of his eye, Peter could see Sam glaring at him. 

There was a moment when Peter settled his eyes back onto the TV, where he could feel tears in the corner of his eyes, he blinked them away. He smiled to himself, Tony leaned his head down, close to Peter’s.

“You okay, kid?” He asked softly.

“Yeah. I’m just, you know, happy.” 

The look on Tony’s face almost brought on more tears, but Peter just smiled and snuggled back into his couch. 

Yeah, happy was a good word for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter next week and it's even more tooth rottingly sweetier then this one, oy.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, so this is it, the final chapter! I just want to thank everyone for reading, their kudos & comments. I greatly enjoyed writing this and I'm glad people liked it! While this is the end of the story, I do have a few one offs I will post eventually and maybe, a prequel of sorts.

Peter stood nervously in front of the Avengers Compound, MJ standing at his side. Happy had just dropped them off after picking them up for the city. Peter was waiting by the front, he asked MJ to stay behind while Ned and Happy went inside.

Before they arrived he had the sudden realization that MJ was about to meet his whole family for the first time. And that they’d totally out him as Spider-man accidentally within minutes.

He’d rather tell her, then have it be a surprise. At some point in his life, he was going to tell someone he’s Spider-man and not have it told for him. Or guessed.

“So,” he said nervously, “uh, I wanted to um, tell you something before, uh, we went in.”

“You’re Spider-man,” she deadpanned. 

“No,” he said quickly, no. Of course not.”

MJ cracked up laughing a second later. “You are not good at keeping secrets.”

“I am excellent at keeping secrets!” He exclaimed. “I am very mysterious.”

“Alright then if Spider-man isn’t your secret, what were you going to tell me?”

“Um,” he started, trying to come up with another secret he could tell her, and then, he went for it. “Ilikeyou.”

She didn’t say anything for a second and then leaned in and kissed him. Square on the mouth. He was so surprised he didn’t even move. She pulled away and the grin on his face could not be helped.

“I like you, too.”

“I got that from the kiss,” Peter grinned. They both leaned in again, meeting in the middle for a kiss that was a lot smoother than the first one. 

When they broke apart, they were both smiling. “Oh, and yeah, I’m Spider-man.”

“Ha! I knew it. Also, we’ve got an audience.”

He turned around to face the entrance to the Compound to find a majority of this family standing at the door. Sam started a slow clap that the others followed with. 

He didn’t even make it inside before they embarrassed him, oh well.

====

Tony Stark was the most extra person in the entire world. And he was totally fine with that. There was no way he’d let Peter’s birthday happen without doing every single thing he could for it. He had more people over at the Compound then he thought possible, every Avenger and their families along with Peter’s friends. It was a lot of people, but it was worth it for Peter.

He also got a jumpy castle and a petting zoo. And a few carnival games. Peter was speechless when he walked into the backyard to see a mini carnival. Peter whined a little and pouted at the site, but eventually Tony got a genuine smile out of him. 

Pepper walked over and sat beside him at the table he was occupying. He was watching Peter and his friends petting the llamas. It put a smile on his face, the absolute delight that Peter had when petting animals. 

“You’ve done a good job,” Pepper commented. “He’s embarrassed, but he’s happy.”

Tony laughed. “That’s what I’m aiming for.”

They sat in comfortable silence, watching the scene before them play out. Sam and Bucky were standing in front of a BBQ arguing over the right time to flip burgers. Steve was diligently painting the faces of all the kids that had lined up to get them. Peter already had an Iron Man mask on the side of his face. It didn’t matter that this was his seventh birthday, he looked way too excited to get it. 

He caught sight of Peter again, he was holding hands with MJ as they watched Clint showing Ned how to shoot an arrow. He caught Tony’s attention and blushed, turning away with a shy smile on his face. 

“I never thought I’d see this,” Pepper commented and Tony turned back at her, making a hmm sound. “Everyone together like this, without the world ending.”

“Honestly, Pep? Me either,” he paused, “but I like it.”

Pepper slipped her hand into his and squeezed him. “I was thinking, we might want to consider bringing in more members to our family.”

Tony looked at her, knowing exactly what she was talking about. The thought had crossed his mind now, once or twice. Especially after asking Pepper to marry him, but they’d never really said it out loud. “I dunno, Pep. Peter’s really needy, he might not like having a sibling around.”

She laughed. “Hmm, now that I think about it, I don’t know if I can take another Stark running around this place.”

They laughed together, the idea sounding better and better the more Tony thought about it.

====

The sheer amount of gifts that Peter opened made his face flush and his heart stammer in his chest. Everyone got him something (and some people more than one thing) and Peter could barely keep it together. He never liked being the center of attention, to begin with, but everyone sitting around him watching him was starting to get a bit too much. He’d finished opening most of the gifts, there were one or two left when Tony swooped in.

“Alright, let’s give the birthday boy a break from saying thank you a million times. There’s still a lot more food left. And we’ve got that bouncy castle for the rest of the night but I swear to go Clint you step foot in that and I’ll strangle you.”

Thankfully people heard the hidden message in Tony’s statement, it was time to leave Peter alone for a bit. He was grateful as people peeled away, going back outside and into the kitchen. Soon all that was left with Tony, Ned, and MJ. 

“I’ve got something for you to open,” Tony said, walking over to the pile and coming back with a thick book. He placed it down in front of Peter. It had a hardcover leather-bound cover and embossed on the front was the word Family in fancy cursive writing. 

“What is this?” Peter said softly, he flipped open the book. 

The pages were lined with photos, it took him a second to realize they were of his parents. He didn’t recognize many of the photos, somewhere of his parents much younger then Peter had ever seen them. “How?” He said, his hand shaking as he turned each page. More and more photos of his parents, some with Ben, some with his grandparents. There was even a photo of himself as a baby in his Mother’s arms next to some people he didn’t know.

“Well,” Ned stated, “I tried really hard to find what happened to Ben’s old stuff, but uh, I couldn’t find much. I was able to find some old yearbook photos of your Mom and Dad and Ben too. That was the easiest part. And then I uh, asked MJ for help too and we tracked down some old classmates and asked them for any pictures. You’d be surprised as to how many people were more than willing to send over any pictures they had. Most of the people hadn’t left Queens, so we tracked them down pretty easily. I had kinda hit a dead end after that so I uh, might have asked Mr. Stark for some help.”

“And,” Tony started taking over the story as Peter flipped to a page full of his parent’s wedding photos, “I was able to track somewhere some of your old stuff landed. I got about two box fulls, they are up in your room. Not a lot of stuff, but some baby pictures of you, too cute for words might I add and a few other things. I’m sorry we couldn’t get this to you sooner, Pete. I wish I would have thought about this before.”

“No, it’s okay,” Peter said, he didn’t even know how he could speak anymore. The things they did for him, they were so far beyond what he expected. “I don’t know if I can even thank you guys enough for this. This is all, this is perfect.”

“There's more,” Tony said, he reached over and flipped a few pages quickly until they arrived at another section of the book. Instead of pictures of his parents, Ben and Peter, there were older pictures of Peter and Ned together. Then Peter, Ned, and MJ. A dozen or so photos of him and his friends. Peter looked up at all of them, not even remotely ashamed of the tears in his eyes. “Keep going, kid. You’re almost the best part.”

Peter flipped to the next page to see photos of him and Tony. Five or six of the two of them in the lab together and a few selfies Peter had taken. “FRIDAY is super good for candid photos and I also hacked into your phone to get the rest of them.”

Peter laughed. “You weren’t even a little scared of what kind of photos you might find?”

His friends giggled and Tony fiend a shocked expression. “Not from my little angel of innocence, child.”

Peter grinned the more pages, the more photos and additional people in them. Pictures with the team, some candid and some posed. Towards the end was a photo from the day at the museum, MJ, and Peter facing each other outside of the theater. MJ was saying something, her mouth opened a little, and Peter, well, he looked embarrassingly smitten with her. The one next to it was taken in the theater, clearly by either Wanda or Ned. It was the back view of their seats, Peter and MJ were sharing the armrest, all but holding hands. 

“You’re lucky I allowed such things to be in this,” MJ interjected, pointing to the photo. 

Peter kept smiling, he couldn’t stop even if he tried. “Thank you all so much, just thank you. You guys didn’t have to do this for me.”

“Of course we didn’t, you idiot. We wanted to do this for you. And really, it was a team effort. Everyone helped, it was actually terrifying how many people were willing to take super stalker photos of you and other people,” MJ added, her face a little flush.

“I’m pretty sure it was a competition,” Tony added. “Who could get the cutest Peter photo possible. There was a point system and everything. We have a whole other book of the less than stellar more embarrassing photos too.”

Peter’s face was redder than his mask, he put the book down. “I just don’t know what to say anymore, I just, thank you.”

He received a very awkward but heartwarming group hug between Ned and MJ before they took their leave. MJ leaned down and kissed his cheek before going walking off with Ned towards the backdoor. Peter was left alone with Tony, who sat at the chair next to him. Peter returned to the book, skimming through the last few pages.

“The ones in the back are empty,” Tony said as Peter neared the end. “So you can continue to add to them.”

The last few pages were empty like Tony had said, leaving more than enough room for additional pictures. Peter could still feel the blush on his face, he knew that if he even tried to look at Tony, he might not be able to stop the tears. 

“Thanks,” he said again for lack of better words. “This is perfect. This whole thing, it’s perfect.”

Tony leaned over and hugged him, kissing his temple. “Anything for my kid.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again for coming along on the ride! <3 <3


End file.
